Traumatic vs. atraumatic 22 G needle for therapeutic and diagnostic lumbar puncture in the hematologic patient: A prospective clinical trial

Abstract

We investigated the impact of needle type on post lumbar puncture headache (FLPH) in hematologic patients undergoing LP. We prospectively compared traumatic (TN) vs. atraumatic 22G needles. Twenty-seven patients underwent 48 LPs, 22 with chemotherapy injection. PLPH occurred almost exclusively with TN (4% vs. 30% p=0.02), irrespective of chemotherapy injection.