Objective: To study the incidence in Catalonia of spinal cord compression due to spinal hematoma secondary to neuraxial anesthesia.
Methods: The incidence of hematoma was based on published cases (MEDLINE, the Spanish Medical Index [Indice Medico Español], and Google) or cases reported at medical meetings or conferences by anesthesiologists from Catalan hospitals from 1996 to 2005, inclusive. The annual number of neuraxial anesthesias (spinal, epidural, and combined) was estimated based on the ANESCAT 2003 survey and the total number of anesthesias was calculated using the ANESCAT 2003 survey in conjunction with the surgical reports of Catalan hospitals.
Results: A total of 11 cases of spinal hematoma after neuraxial anesthesia (7 after spinal anesthesia and 4 after epidural anesthesia) were reported or published from 1996 to 2005, inclusive. A total of 194 154 neuraxial anesthesias were performed in 2003 (126 560 spinal anesthesias and 5926 combined spinal-epidural anesthesias) and it was estimated that somewhat over 1 700 000 neuraxial anesthesias were performed over the 10 years reviewed. The incidence (95% confidence interval [CI]) of hematoma was 0.6 (95% CI, 0.3-1.2) per 100 000 neuraxial anesthesias, 0.6 (95% CI, 0.3-1.3) per 100 000 spinal anesthesias, and 0.7 (95% CI, 0.2-1.9) per 100 000 epidural anesthesias.
Conclusions: The incidence of spinal hematoma after neuraxial anesthesia is slightly more than 1 per 150 000 anesthesias-a similar finding to that of other epidemiological studies. The incidence is slightly higher in epidural anesthesia. These data imply a risk of approximately 1 spinal hematoma per year in Catalonia.