Effects of a 30-mL epidural normal saline bolus on time to full motor recovery in parturients who received patient-controlled epidural analgesia with 0.125% bupivacaine with 2 μg/mL of fentanyl

Previous research suggests that an epidural bolus of 30 mL of normal saline after vaginal delivery may decrease the time for recovery from motor block. A double-blind, randomized controlled study was conducted in 46 parturients to determine if a 30-mL normal saline bolus or sham administered via epidural approach after delivery reduces the time to full motor recovery and the time to 2-dermatome regression. No significant difference was found in time to full motor recovery (saline group 83.18 ± 54 minutes vs control group 100.23 ± 48 minutes, P =.27) or time to 2-dermatome sensory regression (saline group 29.32 ± 16.35 minutes vs control group 36.14 ± 14.39 minutes, P =.15). Results suggest no advantage to the administration of a saline bolus after delivery to hasten the motor recovery in parturients. A post hoc power analysis suggested a sample size of 204 subjects would have been needed to show a difference for this dilute local anesthetic regimen. There were no complications to the technique, which suggests that it is safe to perform, but the difference in recovery (approximately 17 minutes) from a dilute local anesthetic dose may not be clinically significant.