Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
2 Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
3 Department of Anesthesiology, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
4 School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Abstract
Objective: Any operation leads to body stress and tissue injury that causes pain and
its complications. Glucocorticoids such as Dexamethasone are strong anti‑inflammatory
agents, which can be used for a short time post‑operative pain control in various surgeries.
Main purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of administration of intravenous (IV)
Dexamethasone on reducing the pain after cesarean.
Methods: A double‑blind prospective randomized clinical trial was performed on 60
patients candidate for elective caesarean section. Patients were randomly assigned into
two groups: A (treatment: 8 mg IV Dexamethasone) and B (control: 2 mL normal saline).
In both groups, variables such as mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR),
respiratory rate (RR), pain and vomiting severity (based on visual analog scale) were
recorded in different time points during first 24 h after operation. Statistical methods
using repeated measure analysis of variances and t‑test, Mann‑Whitney and Chi‑square
tests were used for analyzing data.
Findings: The results indicated that within‑group comparisons including severity of pain,
MAP, RR and HR have significant differences (P < 0.001 for all variables) during the study
period. Between group comparisons indicated significant differences in terms of pain
severity (P < 0.001), MAP (P = 0.048) and HR (P = 0.078; marginally significant), which in
case group were lower than the control group.
Conclusion: IV Dexamethasone could efficiently reduce post‑operative pain severity and
the need for analgesic consumption and improve vital signs after cesarean section.
Keywords
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