Safety of PACU discharge without motor function assessment after spinal anesthesia

Editor's Note

Discharge from the postanesthesia care unit (PACU) without assessment of lower limb motor function after spinal anesthesia for total hip or knee arthroplasty did not increase length of hospital stay or readmissions but significantly reduced time in the PACU (0.40 vs 1.56 hours), this study finds.

This multicenter Danish study included 1,359 patients (670 assessed for motor function and 689 not assessed).

Because there was a nonsignificant tendency toward increased adverse events (eg, dizziness, fainting, hypotension, tachycardia) during the first 24 hours on the patient care unit in patients not having a lower limb motor function assessment (5.8% vs 7.4%), further safety data are needed, the authors say.

A Randomized, Multicenter, Semiblinded, Noninferiority, Controlled Trial