What is the role of lumbar puncture?

Lumbar puncture is the most commonly used method in clinical anesthesia surgery, and it is also the best diagnostic method for meningitis. This shows the importance of lumbar puncture in clinical application. However, lumbar puncture is not suitable for all patients, and it needs to be judged based on the patient's condition, which requires a good diagnosis before surgery. So what is the general purpose of a lumbar puncture?

Lumbar puncture, also known as lumbar puncture, is a method of measuring intracranial pressure by puncturing the lumbar intervertebral space and removing cerebrospinal fluid for examination. Before the advent of CT, lumbar puncture was basically required for the diagnosis of cerebrovascular disease. Since the widespread use of CT examinations, although lumbar punctures have become relatively less common, CT examinations still cannot completely replace lumbar punctures. Some cerebrovascular diseases can only be diagnosed and differentially diagnosed through lumbar puncture.

When patients experience symptoms of meningeal irritation such as headache, vomiting, and neck stiffness, is it subarachnoid hemorrhage or meningitis? When it comes to differential diagnosis, CT examination is powerless, but lumbar puncture can tell the difference at a glance. At the same time, if it is confirmed to be subarachnoid hemorrhage, releasing 5 to 10 ml of cerebrospinal fluid during lumbar puncture can have a certain therapeutic effect. In addition to relieving headaches, it can also avoid the sequelae of subarachnoid adhesions. In addition, lumbar puncture can also directly measure intracranial pressure and examine the composition of cerebrospinal fluid.

Although lumbar puncture still occupies a very important position in clinical practice, some patients and their families are still afraid of lumbar puncture, mainly because they are worried that lumbar puncture will damage the spinal cord and affect their health. In fact, these worries are unnecessary. Because the spinal cord has a certain length within the vertebral canal. The upper end connects with the medulla oblongata at the foramen magnum, and the lower end is cone-shaped at the level of the lower edge of the first lumbar vertebra, called the vertebrae corporis, which branches out into many cauda equina-like nerves called the cauda equina. Adults no longer have a spinal cord below the first lumbar vertebra, but instead have a larger pool of cerebrospinal fluid in which many cauda equina nerves float.

After knowing the role of lumbar puncture, it is generally recommended not to use lumbar puncture unless it is absolutely necessary. Of course, if doctors have other diagnostic methods, they will not recommend patients to use lumbar puncture to determine whether the patient has certain diseases. Clinically, it has been proven that lumbar puncture is not harmful to the body, so patients can rest assured.