Comparative evaluation of addition of either fentanyl or clonidine to bupivacaine in spinal anesthesia - a randomized controlled trial

ABSTRACT

Background: Single dose subarachnoid anesthesia is a commonly used anesthetic technique for pelvic and lower limb surgeries. Various adjuvants, e.g. opioids, alpha 2 agonists, neostigmine, midazolam etc. have been used to counter some of the shortcomings of the technique. Synthetic lipid soluble opioids like fentanyl for hemodynamic stability or clonidine for prolongation of duration have been used. We wanted to compare both the drugs with a control when used in conjunction with local anesthetics in lower abdominal and pelvic surgeries with regard to sensory and motor block with early postoperative analgesia along with their side effect profile