Comparison of Epidural and Spinal Anesthesia in Patients Undergoing C-Section

ABSTRACT

Caesarean section is the most common surgical procedure performed in India. Although it has been generally agreed that spinal anesthesia (SA) is the preferred anesthetic technique for Cesarean delivery (CD), epidural anesthesia is advised when an epidural catheter is already in place. However, the efficacy of epidural anesthesia has been reported as inferior to that of SA in both elective and emergency situations. Aim of the study To compare epidural and spinal anesthesia in patients undergoing C-section. Methods: The study was conducted in the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics and Department of Anaesthesia, Narayan Medical College and Hospital, Jamuhar, Sasaram, Bihar, India. For the study, patients scheduled for caesarian section were included. Patients who had malfunctioning epidural catheter or improper epidural placement or complicated pregnancy were excluded from the study. A total of 30 patients were included. A written informed consent was obtained from all the participants in the study. To include the patients in the study, it was made sure that they had physical status of I-II; full-term, singleton pregnancy. On the day of surgery, patients were advised to fast for at least 8 hours before the surgery. For the anesthesia, patients were randomly grouped into two groups, Group I and Group II. Patients in Group I was anesthetized with epidural anesthesia and patients in Group II were anesthetized with spinal anesthesia. Results: In the present study, a total of 30 patients were selected. Patients were randomly grouped into Group I and Group 2. The mean age in group 1 was 36.32 years and in group 2 was 35.11 years. The mean height in group 1 was 160.21 cm and in group 2 was 159.21 cm. The mean body weight was 71.11 kg in group 1 and was 70.26 kg in group 2. The Apgar scores at 1 min in Group I was 9.22 and in group II was 8.89. The Apgar scores at 5 min in Group I was 9.56 and in group II was 9.32. VAS pain scores on postoperative day 1 in Group 1 was 2.89 and in Group 2 was 3.16. Conclusion: From the present study, this can be concluded that the effect of anesthesia on the newborn in both the groups was similar and had no different effects.