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Case Reports
Pneumocephalus following the treatment of a postdural puncture headache with an epidural saline infusion.
- G M Vasdev and R C Chantigian.
- Department of Anesthesiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905.
- J Clin Anesth. 1994 Nov 1;6(6):508-11.
AbstractWe report a case of pneumocephalus following the attempted treatment of a postdural puncture headache by a continuous epidural saline infusion. Within 1 hour of infusion, symptoms of a severe headache, nausea, and vomiting prompted a computerized tomographic scan of the head that showed 12 to 15 ml of air in the cranium. The epidural space was located easily with the loss-of-resistance technique using 3 ml of air. A saline bolus and infusion were initiated after confirmation of correct placement of the epidural catheter. We suggest that air passed from the negative-pressure epidural space through the dural puncture created by the diagnostic spinal tap, producing a pneumocephalus.
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