[Criteria of recovery from caudal anesthesia in children]. / Critères de sortie après anesthésie caudale chez l'enfant.

ABSTRACT

The authors evaluated the return of sensory, motor, and sympathetic nervous system function following caudal block in children. Twenty children, ASA PS I, aged 5 +/- 4 yr (mean +/- SD), weighing 22 +/- 9 kg, scheduled for lower abdominal and urologic surgical procedures were studied. Anaesthesia was induced and maintained by halothane, N2O and oxygen. A caudal block was performed with 1 ml/kg of 0.25% bupivacaine. Analgesia assessed by Broadman's score was efficient in 18 out of the 20 children during the first 4 hours after the block. Upper level of cutaneous analgesia was T10 +/- 2 after the block. Two hours after the caudal injection an incomplete motor blockade was found in 14 of 20 children, and at 4 hours no block was found in any child. Heart rate was significantly increased in the upright position (122 +/- 12 to 131 +/- 26 bpm at 2 hours, and 110 +/- 21 to 118 +/- 28 bpm at 4 hours), whereas arterial blood pressure was unchanged in the upright position.