Perioperative management of patients with an intrathecal drug delivery system for chronic pain.

The use of intrathecal medications in the treatment of chronic pain is becoming more commonplace. As such, the incidence of encountering patients receiving therapy via an intrathecal drug delivery system in the perioperative period will also increase. In this case series, we discuss anesthetic management and postoperative analgesic issues in three patients with indwelling intrathecal drug delivery systems placed for treatment of chronic pain.