Comparing Spinal and General Anesthesia in terms of Postoperative Pain in Patients undergoing Hysterectomy

Aims Owing to the effects of anesthesia on pain after hysterectomy as well as different advantages and disadvantages of spinal anesthesia (SA) and general anesthesia (GA), giving priority to one of these techniques over the other still seems controversial. The aim of the present study was to compare SA with GA in terms of pain intensity, the frequency of nausea and vomiting and morphine requirements after abdominal hysterectomy. Instruments and Methods This double-blind clinical trial was conducted on 40 abdominal hysterectomy candidates with American Society of Anesthesiologists I and II presenting to Kowsar Hospital, Semnan, Iran, in 2015. All the patients were briefed on the pain assessment scale the day before the surgery, randomly divided into two groups of GA and SA and underwent abdominal hysterectomy using the same technique. Postoperative pain was then recorded upon admission to post-anesthesia care unit and 6 and 12h later. Furthermore, frequency of nausea and vomiting as well as intravenous morphine requirements was recorded within the first 12h after the surgery. Data were analyzed using independent t-test and Chi-square by SPSS 16 software. Findings Postoperative pain was found to be significantly lower upon entering PACU and 6 and 12h later in the SA group compared to that in the GA group, as was the case for the frequency of nausea and vomiting as well as the dose of intramuscular morphine (p<0.05). Conclusion Generally, postoperative pain in SA is lower than in GA, although different postoperative complications such as nausea and vomiting are observed.

Keywords:

Postoperative Complications , Hysterectomy , General Anesthesia , Spinal Anesthesia