Diagnosis of a breeches anesthesia

In order to be able to clarify the diagnosis of the riding pants anesthesia, the questioning and physical examination is the “A and O. “The most important information is the typical sensitive failure symptoms in the genital and anus region, as well as on the inner side of the thigh. If other symptoms, such as problems urinating or paralysis of the legs, are added, the suspicion of a breeches anaesthesia is obvious.

Your treating physician can also carry out strength tests on the legs. Missing reflexes of the legs (such as loss of the Achilles tendon reflex) can also be a reason for a breeches anaesthesia. Final clarity is provided by an image of the back or spine.

First choice is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the spine. In this painless examination, patients are placed in a “tube” without radiation exposure. After a short time, high-resolution images are produced on which, for example, possible herniated discs or tumors can be easily detected.

If no MRI machine is available or if there is a great deal of urgency, computed tomography (CT) can also be a sensible and very rapid alternative. The disadvantage of this examination, however, is the relatively high radiation exposure. Under certain circumstances, a blood test can also be helpful, e.g. inflammations can be made visible.

Therapy of a riding breeches anesthesia

A suddenly occurring breeches anaesthesia is always an absolute emergency. If not treated, a deep paraplegia with irreparable late effects is imminent. In order to relieve or “save” endangering spinal nerves as quickly as possible, affected patients should therefore be operated on very quickly.Depending on the extent of the injury, the surgical treatment can be minimally invasive (“keyhole principle”) or can involve larger access routes. For example, in case of a herniated disc, the damaged or “slipped” disc is removed so that it can no longer press on the sensitive spinal nerves. In the vast majority of cases, the therapy is performed under general anesthesia, so that patients do not feel anything during the operation.