ABSTRACT
To assess the effectiveness of analgesic rectal suppositories in pain relief from perineal trauma after child birth. A single blind randomized controlled trial. 1[st] February, 2006 to 30[th] April, 2006. Labour ward. Mother and Child health centre, PIMS, Islamabad. Sixty [30 cases and 30 control]. Delivered women with second-degree perineal tear or episiotomy. Women were randomly allocated to either diclofenac or control group with stratification for parity and mode of delivery. First suppository was inserted on completion of suturing and second 12 hours after birth. Women involved in the study were blinded to allocated treatment group. Women were asked to rate their pain according to visual analog scale from 0-10, at six, twelve and twenty four hours after child birth. A total of 60 women were recruited. Using visual analogue scale, women in diclofenac group significantly experienced less pain at 6 hours [p= 0.003] when compared to those who did not received rectal analgesia. There was no significant difference in pain experienced at 12 [p=0.8] and 24 [p=0.1] hour between the two groups. There was no significant difference in terms of need for additional analgesia and maternal satisfaction regarding pain relief [80% vs 70%]. There were no reports of local irritation, or discomfort. There were no side effects reported and no one expressed objections regarding route of administration. The use of rectal analgesic suppositories is a simple, effective and safe method of reducing the pain experienced by women after perineal trauma in the first 6 hours after child birth.