Prolonged nerve blockade in a patient treated with lithium

olonged nerve blockade in a patient treated with lithium Case report (1813) Total Article Views Authors: Lehavi A, Shenderey B, Katz YS Published Date April 2012 Volume 2012:5 Pages 15 - 16 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/LRA.S29593 Received: 30 December 2011 Accepted: 17 January 2012 Published: 02 April 2012 Amit Lehavi, Boris Shenderey, Yeshayahu (Shai) Katz Department of Anesthesiology, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel Abstract: We report a case of a patient, chronically treated with oral lithium, who presented with an extremely prolonged (42-hour) duration of sensory and motor paralysis following an uneventful infraclavicular block for hand surgery that was performed under ultrasound guidance using bupivacaine and lidocaine. Due to its direct effect on nerve conduction of action potential, we propose that lithium may have had a role in the unusually prolonged duration of a peripheral nerve block.