Table.
Results of questionnaires from 71 departments of neurology and neurosurgery. Values are numbers (percentages) of departments unless stated otherwise
| Item | Neurological units (n=48) | Neurosurgical units (n=23) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Response rate | 48/64 (75) | 23/41 (56) | 0.04* |
| Patient position: | |||
| Sitting | 1 (2) | 0 | |
| Lying on side | 44 (92) | 22 (96) | NS |
| Either position | 3 (6) | 1 (4) | |
| Smallest needle size used: | |||
| 18 gauge | 6 (12) | 4 (17) | |
| 20 gauge | 23 (48) | 12 (52) | |
| 22 gauge | 13 (27) | 6 (26) | NS |
| 24 gauge | 2 (4) | 0 | |
| Don’t know | 4 (8) | 1 (4) | |
| Needle type: | |||
| Quincke tip | 34 (71) | 17 (74) | |
| Atraumatic tip | 7 (15) | 3 (13) | 0.9 |
| Respondent did not answer question or used both types | 7 (15) | 3 (13) | |
| Position of needle tip relative to longitudinal axis of spinal cord: | |||
| Parallel | 15 (31) | 9 (39) | |
| Perpendicular | 17 (35) | 6 (26) | 0.7 |
| Not considered | 16 (33) | 8 (35) | |
| Mean (range) volume (ml) of cerebrospinal fluid collected | 8 (2 to 30) | 8 (1 to 20) | 0.9 |
| Mean acceptable incidence (%) of headache after lumbar puncture (range) | 13 (0 to 100) | 17 (5 to 100) | 0.97 |
| Prophylactic bed rest after lumbar puncture: | |||
| Not practised | 8 (17) | 5 (22) | |
| For 1-6 hours | 35 (73) | 15 (65) | 0.8 |
| For 6-24 hours | 5 (10) | 3 (13) | |
| Treatment of headache after lumbar puncture | |||
| Respondent suggested systemic steroids | 22 (46) | 2 (9) | 0.002* |
| Respondent did not suggest systemic steroids | 26 (54) | 21 (91) | |
| Epidural blood patch: | |||
| Considered before 72 hours | 4 (8) | 3 (13) | 0.055 |
| Considered after 72 hours | 27 (56) | 5 (22) | |
| No response | 11 (23) | 9 (39) | |
| Don’t know | 6 (12) | 6 (26) | |
NS=not significant as determined by Fisher’s exact probability test.
*
With χ2 test.