Spinal Anesthesia

[maspaha]

Hiya DU Fam,

I previously posted this in DU Lounge, so my apologies for a double post…

I need some input from those of y’all who’ve had spinal anesthesia in the past.

What was your experience with spinal anesthesia? Especially compared to general anesthesia.

Here’s my situation…I have knee replacement surgery next week. The orthopedic surgeon prefers spinal anesthesia, but, he said he’d do general anesthesia for me. He says spinal anesthesia results in less pain and quicker discharge. This is an outpatient surgery.

About me…I have a history of frequent headaches, including migraines, which are just recently under control. I’m also the f-word…ya know, female, over 60 (barely…don’t ask a lady her age 😉 , and on the smaller side, 5’ 2.5”, and of slightly less than normal weight (no, I ain’t telling y’all how much I weigh either). Based on my research, all of the above give me a higher risk of PDPH, Post Dural Puncture Headache.

My experience with general has been waking up in immense pain…like a 10, on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being worst pain imaginable. And very agitated…kinda feel sorry for the post-op crew.

And one last thing…even though I have birthed humans, I did NOT have epidurals. I brought those new human beings into the world without even an aspirin. 💪🏼

I’d appreciate anything you can share

[BittyJenkins]

1. I have had spinal anesthesia twice when I had

C-sections (before epidurals became the thing). We are talking the 70s.
I had an ok experience both times.

They numb the area before the injection…after the injection I felt a bit nauseous for a few minutes. There are drapes everywhere so you don’t see anything…when they are working on you, you feel pressure and pulling during.

The hardest part was that I had to lay flat for 12 hours after the anesthetic to prevent a severe head ache. That was rough because I wanted to cuddle and nurse my babies. I never got a headache, just incision pain.

It must be a different protocol now post op so your experience could/e different.

Good luck!

[Big Blue Marble]

2. As a older person, do consider the risks of general anesthesia as well.

There are risks of cognitive damage post-GA. Check that out as well in making your
decision.

[phylny]

3. See if your doctor/hospital does ERAS - Enhanced Recovery After Surgery

I had a pretty significant surgery in June (10 hours, 3 nights in the hospital) and this was very helpful to me.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6488471/

Good luck!