[A case report of ultrasound guided peripheral nerve block for lower extremity amputation of a patient with anti-phospholipid syndrome].

A 60-year-old female with anti-phospholipid syndrome underwent amputation of her left lower limb. She had had a history of cerebral infarction, cerebral hemorrhage, coagulation abnormalities, thrombocytopenia, and pneumothorax, and just recovered from disseminated intravascular coagulation. After intravenous fentanyl 25 microg, ultrasound-guided sciatic, femoral and lateral femoral cutaneous nerve blocks were performed. We used 0.75% ropivacaine 15 ml and 1% lidocaine 15 ml for sciatic nerve block, 0.75% ropivacaine 5 ml and 1% lidocaine 5 ml for femoral nerve block and 0.75% ropivacaine 5 ml for femoral cutaneous nerve block. For femoral nerve block, a catheter was inserted and ropivacaine was infused at 4 ml x hr(-1) after surgery. Amputation at the left thigh was successfully performed and postoperative course was uneventful. The sciatic, femoral and lateral femoral cutaneous nerve blocks were useful for amputation of a patient with severe coagulopathy by anti-phospholipid syndrome.