[Anesthetic management with a laryngeal mask airway for gastrectomy in a patient with myotonic dystrophy].

We report a case of 50-year-old male with myotonic dystrophy who underwent distal gastrectomy. A laryngeal mask airway (LMA) was inserted easily without using a muscle relaxant after propofol injection. Anesthesia was maintained with continuous propofol infusion and epidural anesthesia. The airway management with LMA enabled us to evaluate patient's awareness and respiratory pattern appropriately at the end of anesthesia. No respiratory complications, such as respiratory depression or atelectasis, occurred after surgery. We consider that LMA is useful for anesthetic management in a patient with myotonic dystrophy.