Preprocedural Ultrasonography Versus Landmark-Guided Spinal Anesthesia in Geriatric Patients with Difficult Anatomy: A Prospective Randomized Trial.

Objective: This study was aimed to determine whether preprocedural ultrasonography (USG) affects the technical performance of spinal anesthesia in elderly patients with difficulty in palpating landmarks, scoliosis, or previous spine surgery.

Materials and methods: This prospective study was conducted in 156 elderly patients scheduled for elective orthopedic lower extremity surgery. The patients were randomly divided into 2 groups to receive spinal anesthesia by the preprocedural USG examination (group U) or conventional landmark palpation technique (group P). The primary finding of our study was the rate of successful access to the subarachnoid space on initial needle insertion attempt. Secondary achievements included number of needle insertion attempts, number of needle redirections, total procedure time, needle pain scores, patient satisfaction, and complications of spinal anesthesia.

Results: The rate of successful access to the subarachnoid space at the first needle insertion attempt was significantly higher in group U than in group P (74.4% vs 53.8%, p=0.008). Medians (interquartile range) of both needle insertion attempts (group P, 2 [1-3] vs group U, 1 [1-2]; p=0.038) and needle redirections (group P, 3 [2-5] vs group U, 2 [1-4]; p=0.028), requiring to achieve dural puncture, were significantly higher among the patients in group P than those in group U. No statistically significant difference was found between the groups regarding total procedure time, pain scores, patient satisfaction scores, and spinal anesthesia-induced complications (p>0.05).

Conclusion: Our study findings showed that preprocedural neuroaxial USG improves technical performance of spinal anesthesia in elderly patients with difficult anatomy.