Postoperative analgesia after Caesarean delivery under neuraxial anaesthesia in a tertiary institution north central Nigeria: An observational study

Abstract

Objective: A retrospective study to evaluate the postoperative analgesic regimens utilized after Caesarean section (CS) under neuraxial anaesthesia. Currently, a multimodal opioid-sparing analgesic regimen is the gold standard for post-CS pain management and it includes local/regional techniques combined with scheduled nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and acetaminophen. Methods: This study was conducted on parturients who underwent CS under neuraxial anaesthesia from October 2012- March 2022 in a tertiary hospital in Ilorin, Nigeria. Data extracted from 308 case folders included the patient's characteristics, comorbidities, type of neuraxial technique, and postoperative analgesic regimen. Data analysis was done using IBM-SPSS 22. Result: The commonest post -operative analgesic combination was IV Acetaminophen+ IV pentazocine+ IM diclofenac 273 (66.2%). None of the patients received a patient-controlled analgesia (PCA), transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block. Conclusion: Majority of the parturients received acetaminophenopioid/ NSAID combination drugs. No parturient received the current opioidsparing multimodal analgesic regimen post-CS. The hospital requires a post-cs pain management protocol.