Spinal Anesthesia in a 21-Year-Old Woman With Osteogenesis Imperfecta: A Case Report

The choice of anesthetic technique in patients with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) can be a challenge for anesthesiologists and must be adjusted based on specific circumstances and abnormalities. We report our anesthetic technique in an OI patient to emphasize this point, and to frame a discussion of this subject. According to the accessible data, we report one of the rare OI patients who have undergone spinal anesthesia for emergency surgery. The patient was a 21-year-old female with OI type IV, who was admitted due to severe anal pain. The surgeon decided to perform an emergency reduction of a prolapsed rectum, with late permanent fixation. Considering the circumstances, we decided to perform spinal anesthesia for the operation, which lasted for 30 minutes. The patient underwent rectal prolapse reduction via rectosigmoidoscopy, of up to 25 cm of rectum. She was transferred to the post-anesthesia care unit after her vital signs were stabilized. After gaining lower extremity strength, she was transferred to the surgery ward. The next day, she was discharged from the hospital. Although most authors believe that general anesthesia following fiberoptic intubation is the preferred method for OI patients, it is likely that spinal anesthesia is acceptable in such patients. Although it is technically difficult, the procedure can be performed by expert anesthesiologists.