Tension Applied to Lumbar Epidural Catheters During Removal Is Much Greater With Patient Sitting Versus Lying

Management of the sheared epidural catheter: is surgical extraction really necessary?

“…Blackshear et al [2] suggested that less tension is required to remove an epidural catheter when the patient is in the lateral decubitus position as opposed to a sitting position. Another study showed that catheters inserted in the lateral position required less force when removed in the lateral position [3].…”

Broken Epidural Catheter After Vaginal Delivery

“…The removal in the extreme flexion position is not effective. A higher BMI is considered one of the risk factors for the stretching and breakage of the catheter [ 5 , 6 ].…”

“…For the management, the consensus is conservative management if the patient is asymptomatic with regular annual follow-up, as the catheter material is considered physiologically inert, and no immunological reaction is expected. Surgical management in the form of exploratory laminectomy is kept for symptomatic patients with motor or sensory function limitations [5][6][7].…”

Removing knotted or stuck epidural catheters: a systematic review of case reports

“…The force required to remove a lumbar catheter was 2.5 times more in the sitting position than that in the lateral position [ 17 ]. Blackshear et al [ 18 ] suggested that less tension is required to remove the catheter when the patient is in the lateral decubitus position as opposed to the sitting position. According to Boey and Carrie, lateral positioning allowed a 2.5 N reduction in the force needed to withdraw the epidural catheter in the median and paramedian approaches [ 19 ].…”