Evaluation of Ultrasound (US) Assistance for Anesthesia Trainees for Caesarean Section Spinal Placement

Evaluation of US Assistance for Anesthesia Trainees for Spinal Placement in Parturients Having Caesarean Section: A Randomized Control Trial

Status

Completed

Phases

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT01444638

Enrollment

Registered

2011-10-03

Start date

2011-01-31

Completion date

2012-09-30

Last updated

2013-01-15

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Pregnancy

Keywords

pregnancy, Caesarian, section, spinal

Brief summary

Parturients receiving spinal anesthetic for Cesarean section will be randomized to have/not have pre-spinal ultrasound examination of their back.

Detailed description

Parturients receiving spinal anesthetic for elective Cesarean section will be randomized to have/not have pre-spinal ultrasound examination of their back, prior to spinal insertion by anesthesia trainees. The hypothesis is that ultrasound visualization of the patient spinal spaces will allow junior residents to correctly place the spinal needle with fewer attempts. The null hypothesis is that there is no difference in the primary outcome (number of attempts). i.e. the investigators hypothesize that the number of attempts is not affected by ultrasound assistance. The control group will undergo spinal anesthesia with manual palpation, the standard of care.

Interventions

DEVICEUltrasound examination

Trainees will receive pre-procedure U/S guided examination of the parturient's back.

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Masking

SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

FEMALE

Age

18 Years to 45 Years

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

1. Parturient scheduled for elective spinal anesthetic for caesarean section. 2. Resident level PGY1 or PGY2. 3. Resident experience between 2-25 spinal anesthetics. 4. ASA 1-3 scheduled for elective sections

Exclusion criteria

1. Parturient BMI \> 40. 2. Emergency C-section. 3. Previous spinal surgery or scoliosis. 4. Parturient refusal 5. Resident refusal 6. Multiple gestations

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Number of attempts at intrathecal needle tip placement during spinal anesthesia.	Day 1

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
1. Time to place spinal anesthetic (seconds), measured from introducer placement to confirmation of cerebral spinal fluid (CSF).	Day 1
Space used for 1st attempt, as estimated by palpation or U/S	Day 1
Number of spaces used	Day 1
Dural depth (cm)	Day 1

Countries

Canada

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026