Accidental dural puncture: Should an intrathecal catheter be threaded?

Abstract

It was a late night on the obstetrics floor. I was the resident on call, overseeing the management of 7 epidurals in laboring patients. Just as I was about to lay my head down in the call room, I received a call from the nurse, who told me that a patient being admitted was asking to speak with me about an epidural. I looked over her chart and saw that she was a healthy 32-year-old female giving birth to her second child. She had 1 uncomplicated pregnancy in the past and no previous miscarriages or abortions. When I met the patient in the labor room, the obstetrics resident informed me she was 6 cm dilated and would likely deliver that evening.