Abstract: Aim The efficacy of bupivacaine administered alone or in combination with dexamethesone in epidural blockade was observed.Methods 120 cases of microsurgical operation in lower extremities were randomly divided intofour groups in double blind form,.The bupivacaine (0.75%, 1.4 mg/kg) was administered alone in the control group(A) and in combination with different doses of dexamethesone(0.075、0.15、0.3 mg/kg)in the test groups (B,C and D)respectively.The anesthetic time, postoperative analgesic time and the effect of neuromuscular blockade in each group were compared.Results The onset time in the test groups was shorter than that in the control group, and the anesthetic time and postoperative analgesic time in the test groups were longer than those in the control group. Conclusion The efficacy of bupivaceine combined with dexamethesone was superior to that of it alone in epidural blockade.

Key words: bupivacaine, dexamethesone, anesthesia, epidural