Abstract

Ropivacaine 0.5%, 0.75% and 1.0% with epinephrine 5 μg/ml was investigated in an open, multi-center study for lumbar epidural anesthesia in 46 patients undergoing urologic surgery. The onset time for analgesia to T12 was 5-7 minutes after the end of the ropivacaine injection. Maximum segmental levels of analgesia (T4-6) were not different between the groups. Complete motor blockade was obtained in 3/15, 7/15 and 10/15 patients in the 0.5%, 0.75% and 1.0% groups, respectively. Duration of analgesia at the T10 level was 2.5 hours in the 0.5% group, and increased to 4 hours in the 1.0% group. Analgesia was satisfactory for surgery in all patients except for 2/15 in each of the 0.5% and 0.75% groups and 1/15 in the 1.0% group. Hypotension was experienced by three, six and three patients in the 0.5%, 0.75% and 1.0% groups, respectively. Bradycardia was seen in two patients in the 0.5% group and one patient in the 1.0% group. Backache was experienced by seven patients (four in the 0.5%, two in the 0.75% and one in the 1.0% group). No late-occurring adverse experiences were observed. In conclusion, 0.5%, 0.75% and 1.0% ropivacaine with epinephrine provide adequate analgesia and motor blockade for urologic surgery.