We are employing fingertip temperature monitoring to estimate the spread of epidural anesthesia in patients who received combined epidural and general anesthesia. In this study we examined the relation between fingertip temperature pattern and epidural puncture site. One hundred patients scheduled for elective digestive tract surgery were studied. They were divided into three groups according to the epidural puncture sites as follow; Group 1, T7-9 (n = 26); group 2, T9-12 (n = 48); and group 3, T12-L5 (n = 26). Fingertip temperature was determined by Anritsu thermocouples. These probes were attached to the thumb and the big toe (hand and foot fingertip). The changes of these temperatures were classified to four types. In type 1, the hand fingertip temperatures were elevated after administration of the local anesthetics. In type 2, both hand and foot fingertip temperatures were elevated. In type 3, the foot fingertip temperature was elevated. In type 4, the hand and foot fingertip temperatures were unchanged. In group 1, we found 10 cases of type 1, 13 cases of type 2 and 3 cases of type 3. In group 2; 15, 22, 11 cases respectively. In group 3; 1, 16 cases respectively and 1 case in type 4. In group 1 and 2, the type 1 temperature pattern was observed more than in group 3 (P < 0.01). And in group 3, the type 3 temperature pattern was observed more than in group 1 and 2 (P < 0.01). We found no intergroup difference in type 2 pattern. But there were some exceptions.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)