Spinal anaesthesia is preferred for caesarean sections to avoid maternal morbidity and mortality associated with general anaesthesia, though hypotension management is a key consideration.
Supports spinal anaesthesia preference in caesarean sections to limit risks; leaves open optimal hypotension management strategies.
Regional anaesthesia is preferred by most anaesthetists for the majority of caesarean sections. The major advantage of regional anaesthesia is the avoidance of maternal morbidity and mortality associated with general anaesthesia. The importance of this can be seen in the most recent Report of Confidential Enquires into Maternal Deaths in which it was reported that of the direct maternal deaths attributed to anaesthesia, all six were associated with difficulties during general anaesthesia. Although a number of regional anaesthesia techniques are available, spinal anaesthesia is particularly popular because it is fast, easy to perform and provides excellent intraoperative analgesia.
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Khaw et al. (2006) studied this question.
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