Background. Lumbar epidural anesthesia is safe in patients with previous spinal surgery, but it is not always successful or easily performed.

Method. The authors present the case of a parturient with Harrington rod insertion, scheduled for cesarean delivery, whose epidural anesthetic could not be extended beyond the T10 level.

Result. After letting the epidural block recede below the lumbar level, a successful spinal anesthetic was administered producing a sensory level to T4.