Paediatric regional anaesthesia – what makes a difference?

Regional anaesthetic techniques are useful for providing post-operative pain control for ambulatory surgery in children. This chapter focuses on unique features of paediatric anatomy and physiology that allow successful performance of these techniques. An overview of the effective use of long-acting local anaesthetics in children is presented. Combinations of local anaesthetics and adjunct medications that prolong caudal blockade, the most commonly performed paediatric block, are reviewed, with a goal of providing prolonged analgesia with minimal side-effects. An overview of the use of peripheral nerve blockade and specific recommendations for the use of these blocks in children is also presented.