Table 3.
Characteristics of claims for neuraxial hematomas after spinal and epidural anesthesia for nonspine orthopaedic procedures*
| Factor | Number (%) |
|---|---|
| Age (years), mean ± SD | 78 ± 12 |
| Male | 5 (50) |
| Preoperative conditions | |
| ASA physical status 1–2 (generally healthy) | 3 (30) |
| Obesity (n = 8) | 2 (25) |
| Procedure | |
| TKA | 6 (60) |
| Fracture repair | 3 (30) |
| THA/revision | 1 (10) |
| Type of block | |
| Epidural | 8 (80) |
| Spinal | 2 (20) |
| Patient was receiving anticoagulants | 9 (90) |
| Timing of recognition of hematoma | |
| Day of surgery | 1 (10) |
| Postoperative day 1 | 1 (10) |
| Postoperative day 2 | 3 (30) |
| Postoperative day 3 | 2 (20) |
| Postoperative day 4 | 2 (20) |
| Postoperative day 5 | 1 (10) |
| > 8 hours between symptoms and surgical decompression (n = 9) | 9 (100) |
| Injury resulted in permanent and severe paraplegia | 10 (100) |
| American Society of Regional Anesthesiologists guidelines were followed (n = 8) | |
| No | 5 (63) |
| Liability | |
| Anesthesia payment was made† | 8 (80) |
| Median payment (2015 USD)† | USD 351,000 |
| Payment range | USD 101,562–USD 1,370,000 |
*N = 10 unless stated otherwise; missing data excluded; †claims paid and median payments include payments by anesthesiologist and anesthesiologist’s corporation; claims included no information on payments by surgeons; ASA = American Society of Anesthesiologists.