Intraosseous regional anesthesia as an alternative to intravenous regional anesthesia.

A series of 109 orthopedic operations was performed under intraosseous regional anesthesia on the upper and lower limbs. Anesthesia was satisfactory in 106 of the cases; in the other three, inadequate anesthesia was caused by faulty technique. The spread of lidocaine into the bone and venous network was demonstrated by radiography, and the blood levels after tourniquet release were below the toxic level. Intraosseous regional anesthesia proved to be a valuable technique to be used whenever intravenous anesthesia fails or is not feasible. Injection into cancellous bone (osteoclysis) is easily and quickly performed under aseptic conditions, and there were no systemic complications.