- Home
- Useful resources
- Patient information leaflets
Patient information leaflets
Free leaflets from the Royal College of Anaesthetists on nerve blocks, spinals, epidurals, pain relief and risks, to download and print.
Free leaflets for patients, written by anaesthetists and patients together. Tap a leaflet to open it, or use Download to save or print it.
Before your operation
-
Your nerve block
What to expect if you are offered a nerve block for your operation.
-
Your spinal anaesthetic
What to expect if you are offered a spinal anaesthetic for your operation.
-
Your epidural anaesthetic
What to expect if you are offered an epidural for pain relief during and after your operation.
-
Anaesthetic choices for hip or knee replacement
The different choices of anaesthetic and pain relief for a hip or knee replacement.
After your operation
-
Pain relief after surgery
How pain can be controlled after surgery, the types of pain relief and how to take them.
Risks and side effects
-
Spinal anaesthetics: risks and side effects
How common the side effects and risks of a spinal anaesthetic are, shown as simple pictures.
-
Epidural anaesthetics: risks and side effects
How common the side effects and risks of an epidural are, shown as simple pictures.
-
Headache after a spinal or epidural anaesthetic
Why a headache can follow a spinal or epidural, and how it is treated.
-
Nerve damage after a spinal or epidural anaesthetic
How often nerve damage happens after a spinal or epidural, its causes and what can be done.
-
Nerve damage after a peripheral nerve block
How often nerve damage happens after a nerve block, its causes and what can be done.
All leaflets © Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA), some with the Association of Anaesthetists, the Obstetric Anaesthetists' Association or the Faculty of Pain Medicine. Shared unchanged and free of charge, as the RCoA allows for patient information. The newest versions, and translations into many languages, are on the RCoA patient information pages. The leaflets are a guide only: patients should talk through their choices with their own anaesthetist.