Spinal anaesthesia with bupivacaine and fentanyl

Forty two ASA I and II patients scheduled for lower limb or urological surgery were randomly assigned to receive in an observer blinded study subarachnoid hyperbaric bupivacaine 12.5 mg with 25 μg fentanyl (group BF, n = 2, M:F 16:5), or 12.5 mg of bupivacaine and 0.5 ml of saline in a total volume of 3.0 ml (group BS, n = 21, M:F 17:4). Diazepam in 2.5 mg increments was used for intraoperative sedation, no narcotic analgesics were used. The characteristics of sensory and motor block, the time of analgesia request and the pain score at this time were studied. In group BF time of analgesia request was 220 ± 63.4 minutes after the spinal block, while in group BS the same was 153 ± 21.50 minutes. This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05). Two patients in group BF developed pruritis, none of the patients in group BS had this problem. No significant difference in the onset and duration of the motor block was observed.