Unilateral Versus Bilateral Spinal Anesthesia in Day Case Procedures: Difference in Block Characteristics, Micturition Quality and Discharge Time

Many studies have been published in search of the ideal locoregional anesthetic for day case procedures under spinal anesthesia.

Transient neurological symptoms (TNS) and bladder retention are two side effects, which have been described in literature with incidences ranging from 0-80%.

Lidocaine, which was our hospital standard for spinal anesthesia in day case surgery, has a high incidence of TNS. Besides changing the product, dose or additive, optimisation of spinal anesthesia can be performed by changing anesthetic technique or fluid policy.

There is no consensus in literature about fluid policy and the risk of urinary retention. In a previous study we found that urge sensation and bladder capacity is subject to a high variability.

There are a few studies published about unilateral anesthesia for day-case surgery. For bilateral anesthesia it was shown that recuperation of the detrusor function comes with the regression of the sensory block to the S2 dermatome . However, little is known about bladder function during unilateral block of the sacral segments, not to mention the detrusor function and micturition with an asymmetric recovery of the sensory and motor block.