Combined spinal-epidural anesthesia with epidural volume extension causes a higher level of block than single-shot spinal anesthesia.

Background And Objectives: We evaluated the effects of epidural injection with levobupivacaine or serum physiologic, epidural volume extension (EVE), when using combined spinal-epidural anesthesia (CSEA) for cesarean delivery.

Methods: One-hundred and thirty-eight patients with a full-term pregnancy of 37-42 weeks that were scheduled for cesarean delivery were included. Group 1 (n=48) received single-shot spinal anesthesia (SSS), group 2 (n=45) received CSEA-EVE with saline, group 3 received CSEA-EVE with levobupivacaine.