What is the risk of spinal and epidural anesthesia?
Post spinal headache: A small number of patients will experience this complication. The likelihood is about 1-3%. The headache ranges from mild to severe, and is relieved by lying flat. The headache can last from a couple of days to several weeks. It is more common in women of child-bearing age. This type of headache is not related to preexisting conditions such as migraine headaches. Fortunately, the risk of this type of headache has decreased dramatically over the last 10 years due to new technologies in needle design. Should you experience this problem, your anesthesiologist will discuss available remedies. Difficulty urinating: Because spinals and epidurals also numb the nerves that control urinating, you may experience difficulty urinating following these procedures. This may require catheterization to empty your bladder until this effect has worn off. Because of this complication, we often discourage same day surgery patients from choosing this type of anesthetic since it may del
