Neurological complications following general anaesthesia

Summary A causal relationship between resulting neurological impairment and anaesthetic technique is often assumed after spinal or epidural anaesthesia, despite the rare occurrence of these complications. A postoperative neurological deficit may be closely associated with a general anaesthetic. We present three cases in which neurological sequelae followed recent general anaesthesia: all cases occurred within a period of one year at a single institution. These cases exemplify the difficulty in assuming a causal relationship between neurological deficit and anaesthetic technique.