Hadzic's Regional Anesthesia > Part III. Clinical Practice of Regional Anesthesia > Section Four. Blocks of the Head & Neck > Chapter 21. Local & Regional Anesthesia for Eye Surgery Jacques Ripart, MD, Kenneth Merhige, MD, Robert Della Rocca, MD

Local & Regional Anesthesia for Eye Surgery: Introduction

"Ophthalmic surgery is one of the most frequent surgical procedures requiring anesthesia in developed countries.¹ Perioperative morbidity and mortality rates associated with eye (eg, cataract) surgery are low.^2,3 Nevertheless, because patients with cataracts tend to be older and to have serious comorbidities,^4–9 systematic preoperative evaluation should be performed to consider a patient eligible for surgery.⁹ Anesthetic management may contribute to the success or failure of ophthalmic surgery. A closed-claims analysis by Gild and coworkers¹⁰ found that 30% of eye injury claims associated with anesthesia were characterized by the patient moving during ophthalmic surgery. Clinical strategies to ensure patient immobility are essential, as blindness is the outcome in many cases of eye injury. Most problems occurred during general anesthesia. Quicker patient rehabilitation and fewer complications are the main reasons why many ophthalmic surgeons are choosing local (LA) over general anesthesia.^11–13..."