Abstract
Author(s): Amr Sobhy*, Shaimaa W. Zeinah, Waleed H. Alkhamis, Suaad Ali AlEdrisy and Mohamed I. Taema
Background: The requirement for postoperative analgesia is increasingly necessary as the rate of cesarean section (CS) is rapidly rising. Aim: to assess the impact of administering tramadol via injection at the incision site before closing the skin in patients having a cesarean section on postoperative pain and the requirement for pain-relieving medication.
Methods: This Prospective cohort study was conducted at El Madinah National Hospital in El Madinah al Munawara, Saudi Arabia, from June 2021 to December 2021. Forty-eight women who were undergoing cesarean section delivery were allocated into two groups, with each group assigned to receive either tramadol or lidocaine subcutaneously before the closure of the skin in the cesarean section. The pain was evaluated at 6-, 12, and 24-hours post-operation using the visual analog scale (VAS).
Results: The tramadol group showed significantly lower pain levels (VAS scores) compared to the lidocaine group at 6 hours (p<0.001) and 12 hours (p<0.01). At 24 hours, the VAS score was significantly similar to the Lidocaine group. The time to first analgesic demand was significantly longer in the Tramadol group: 5.78±2.84 hours in the Lidocaine group, with a p-value of <0.001.
Conclusion: Subcutaneously injecting Tramadol was more effective in reducing pain scores compared to lidocaine.