Advances in Anesthesia for Laparoscopic Surgeries-Regional Anesthesia and the Road Ahead

Laparoscopy has come a long way since its inception. From being met with ridicule and scepticism to becoming one of the fastest growing and well established branches in modern surgery; the success story of laparoscopy cannot be overemphasized. Laparoscopic surgeries are one of the most commonly performed day care surgeries today. The story of regional anesthesia especially thoracic spinal is quite similar to that of laparoscopy. Facing outright rejection at the time of its inception resulted in this technique lying dormant for decades. It was only recently that some revolutionary workers studied the use of this technique in laparoscopic surgeries. However, their work focused on using thoracic spinal as a salvation tool in patients who could not tolerate general anesthesia. This was followed by more studies evaluating the use of regional anesthesia as a routine technique in laparoscopy. This book discusses the various approaches of regional anesthesia which can be used in laparoscopic surgeries in detail and delineates their pros and cons. It also compares the different approaches in term of various key factors and also discusses the various routes for expansion of these techniques and the road ahead for the future.