Evaluation of leg wrapping for the prevention of postspinal hypotension in cesarean section under spinal anesthesia

Aparna Abhijit Bagle, Adithya Vishnu, Anil Kumar, Amit Malik, Vinit Garg, Gayatri Khanvilkar

Anesthesia: Essays and Researches 2017 11(2):439-443

Background: Spinal blockade provides excellent anesthesia for patients undergoing cesarean section. However, hypotension after spinal anesthesia is a common adverse effect that is commonly experienced in patients undergoing cesarean section. The aim of our study was to analyze if a simple technique like leg wrapping with elastic crepe bandage would be effective in controlling postspinal hypotension. Materials and Methods: Sixty full-term pregnant patients who were posted for cesarean section belonging to American Society of Anesthesiologists I and II were divided into two groups. Patients in Group W had their legs wrapped with elastic crepe bandage and in the other Group N, leg wrapping was not done. All the patients were preloaded with Ringer lactate at 10 ml/kg before the spinal anesthesia. The hemodynamic parameters were monitored every 3 min until the delivery of the baby and every 5 min until the end of surgery. If hypotension occurred, then along with crystalloid loading a bolus dose of mephentermine 6 mg was given intravenously. Statistical Analysis: Statistical software "Numbers version 3.6.1 (2566)" was used for statistical calculations. Results: Frequency of hypotension in Group W (10%) was significantly less compared to Group N (60%). Vasopressor requirement was significantly less in Group W (P = 0.009), which was highly significant. Conclusion: Wrapping of lower extremities was a simple, easy, and an effective method of decreasing episodes of hypotension and vasopressor requirement after spinal anesthesia in cesarean patients and needs to be practiced routinely.

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