Anesthesiologist’s Perspective on a Child with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia undergoing Neurosurgery: Case Report

Abstract

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common hematological malignancy in the pediatric age group. Anesthesia in such patients necessitates special considerations, in terms of disease progression and its respective treatment as well. We present a case of a 2-year-old child, a known case of ALL posted for drainage of multifocal brain abscess under general anesthesia. Anesthetic management of children with ALL presenting for neurosurgical procedures should focus on disease and its various systemic manifestations, treatment-related side effects, and anesthetic interactions which sometimes may be disastrous.

Keywords

• Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia
• paediatric
• neurosurgery
• anaesthetic technique