Objective: TAP (transversus abdominis plane) block is an important parameter of multimodal analgesia in the control of postoperative pain in cesarean section cases. In our study, we aimed to compare the analgesic consumption, patient satisfaction rate, vital signs, and visual analog scale (VAS) scores of ASA II patients with and without TAP block in cesarean surgery.
Patients and methods: This study was designed as a retrospective review of prospectively collected data and an open-label and randomized clinical trial. The files of 180 patients who underwent elementary cesarean section between January 2019 and December 2019 were analyzed. The ASA score, anesthesia method, age, weight, height, parity, TAP block application, VAS score, analgesia duration, the additional analgesic requirement for maintenance, patient satisfaction, postoperative nausea, vomiting, urinary retention, and other complications were recorded. The 180 patients included in the study were divided into 6 groups: Group 1 - General anesthesia, Group 2 - General anesthesia + TAP block, Group 3 - Spinal anesthesia, Group 4 - Spinal anesthesia + TAP block, Group 5 - Epidural anesthesia, and Group 6 - Epidural anesthesia + TAP block.
Results: There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of demographic variables. The VAS scores of the first 24 hours were significantly different for Group 1. VAS scores in the 1st and 3rd hours were significantly higher in Group 1 than in the other groups. The groups without TAP block had significantly higher VAS scores at the 12th hour. Furthermore, the VAS score in Group 6 at 24 hours was significantly the lowest, and the earliest analgesic requirement was in Group 1. When the number of analgesic needs of the patients in 24 hours was examined, Group 1 was found to be significantly the highest, and Group 6 was significantly the lowest of all groups.
Conclusions: The epidural anesthesia + TAP block Group had the lowest VAS score, the fewest analgesic requirements, the longest analgesia length, and the highest patient satisfaction.