Expert: Ronald Levy, M.D. - 12/7/2006

Question
I am scheduled to have surgery on my wrist in a week, and would like to know if you would forsee any problems, as I am 4 months pregnant.  The procedure they were talking about using, is a "bear block" with sedation, or just general anesthesia.  My OB, and another anesthesiologist, said that either should be okay, as the baby is already past the first tri-mester, but I would really like a second opinion.  Are there any risks that you are aware of that may not have been considered?

Answer
Depending on the surgery, they can do a Bier block, local, regional or general. The less you have done, the better. Personally, my order would be local/sedation, regional, Bier, general. While you are past the first trimester, you still want to limit the amount of anesthesia you get (to be on the safe side). While it is true that you can probably do any of the above without too much risk, I would still suggest the least aggressive anesthesia that you can tolerate. Certainly discuss it with the anesthesiologist who will do the procedure.

Ronald Levy, MD
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
UTMB-Galveston