title: Augmentation of local anesthesia during retinal detachment surgery.
abstract: Because the effect of local anesthesia from a retrobulbar injection diminishes with time, local anesthesia during prolonged retinal surgery may be difficult. A simple, safe, and effective technique for administration of supplemental intraoperative local anesthesia during retinal detachment surgery is described. After a limbal peritomy is performed and the quadrants are dissected bluntly, a 19-guage irrigating cannula is passed posterior to the globe to irrigate the recti muscles and the retrobulbar space with 4% lidocaine hydrochloride. Using this technique, even prolonged vitreoretinal surgery can be performed using local anesthesia with minimal patient discomfort.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam, Houston, Tex 78234-6200.
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Mein
authors.forename: H W
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Flynn
mesh_terms: D000772:Anesthesia, Local / Q000379:methods*; D005123:Eye; D006801:Humans; D007267:Injections; D007430:Intraoperative Care; D009801:Oculomotor Muscles; D012163:Retinal Detachment / Q000601:surgery*