Acta anaesthesiologica Scandinavica
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Acta Anaesthesiol Scand · Jul 2018
Multicenter Study Comparative StudyEpidural extension failure in obese women is comparable to that of non-obese women.
Management of labor epidurals in obese women is difficult and extension to surgical anesthesia is not always successful. Our previous retrospective pilot study found epidural extension was more likely to fail in obese women. This study used a prospective cohort to compare the failure rate of epidural extension in obese and non-obese women and to identify risk factors for extension failure. ⋯ The failure rate of epidural extension did not differ significantly between the groups. Further research is needed to determine the influence of body mass index > 50 kg/m2 on epidural extension for cesarean section.