Lumbar Plexus and Sciatic Nerve Blocks for Fixation of Proximal Femoral Fractures in patients with Multiple Co-Morbidities

Abstract

Anaesthesia management for proximal femoral fractures of high risk patients with debilitating systemic co-morbidities is a challenging task. It is generally done under the effect of regional anaesthesia or general anaesthesia (GA), with systemic analgesics for alleviation of pain after surgery. A combination of lumbar plexus and sciatic nerve blocks can provide anaesthesia and analgesia to the entire lower extremity including the hip. Analgesic potency of lumbar plexus and sciatic nerve blocks is similar to epidural analgesia for hip surgery without the undesirable side effects. We describe here two cases of proximal femoral fractures which were done under combined lumbar plexus and sciatic nerve block.

Keywords

• sciatic nerve
• lumbosacral plexus
• analgesia
• hip fractures
• anaesthesia