A questionnaire survey was carried out to clarify opinions of the medical community regarding the coexistence of duties as doctor and housewife for women doctors. Twenty-eight female and 57 male medical students (age range 21-29 years old) of Kurume University participated in this study. In addition, 5 women doctors were interviewed. Among female medical students, all hoped for marriage, and the positive responses for having children and continuing work after marriage were 93% and 96%, respectively. Among male students, 70% desired marriage with a woman doctor. It was suggested that the cooperation of husband, parents and friends was necessary for female doctors to carry out duties as both doctor and housewife.

Paraparesis is a rare and serious complication following epidural anesthesia. Abnormal findings on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) help with the diagnosis；however, diagnosis is challenging in the absence of MRI abnormalities.We present the case of a 26-year-old pregnant woman who received combined spinal-epidural anesthesia for cesarean delivery. The following day, she developed muscle weakness and sensory disturbances in the right lower extremity, which were attributable to the continuous epidural analgesia with ropivacaine that was used during the cesarean delivery. MRI revealed no spinal canal abnormalities；however, skeletal muscle MRI performed in the subacute phase revealed abnormally high signals on T2 and fat suppression T2-weighted imaging in the right paraspinal muscle below the L3 level. Nerve conduction studies revealed reduced amplitude of compound muscle action potentials and sensory nerve action potentials recorded in the lower extremities. After a 4-month period of rehabilitation, the patient could walk independently with a right ankle-foot orthosis and crutch；however, her right leg palsy and sensory disturbances persisted. Here, we report the clinical course of a patient who developed lumbosacral radiculopathy attributable to ropivacaine-induced neurotoxicity. Additionally, we present a review of the literature.

Paraparesis is a rare and serious complication following epidural anesthesia. Abnormal findings on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) help with the diagnosis；however, diagnosis is challenging in the absence of MRI abnormalities.We present the case of a 26-year-old pregnant woman who received combined spinal-epidural anesthesia for cesarean delivery. The following day, she developed muscle weakness and sensory disturbances in the right lower extremity, which were attributable to the continuous epidural analgesia with ropivacaine that was used during the cesarean delivery. MRI revealed no spinal canal abnormalities；however, skeletal muscle MRI performed in the subacute phase revealed abnormally high signals on T2 and fat suppression T2-weighted imaging in the right paraspinal muscle below the L3 level. Nerve conduction studies revealed reduced amplitude of compound muscle action potentials and sensory nerve action potentials recorded in the lower extremities. After a 4-month period of rehabilitation, the patient could walk independently with a right ankle-foot orthosis and crutch；however, her right leg palsy and sensory disturbances persisted. Here, we report the clinical course of a patient who developed lumbosacral radiculopathy attributable to ropivacaine-induced neurotoxicity. Additionally, we present a review of the literature.