[Peridural anesthesia and analgesia results in general surgery]

Abstract

Anesthesia for major general surgery should involve the use of anesthetic techniques that might reduce the risk of intraoperative and postoperative complications. The combination of intraoperative epidural anesthesia with local anesthetics (EPA) and the use of epidural opiates for postoperative pain relief shows advantages over the application of pure general anesthesia and over postoperative systemic analgesia. Epidural opiates lead to better quality analgesia with a quicker onset and longer duration than systemical analgesics. The spirographic parameters of ventilatory function PF, FVC, FEV [1], paO2, and paCO2 decreased significantly (p less than 0.05) compared with preoperative values when systemic analgesia was performed. After epidural opiates no significant decrease could be seen. Intraoperative use of EPA has the advantages of better hemodynamic conditions and a blockade of the endocrine-metabolic response to surgery. Postoperative peridural opiates block the endocrine response as well: the serum levels of ADH and cortisol are lower than under systemic analgesia.