Incidence of post dural puncture headache following caesarean section under spinal anaesthesia at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi.

BACKGROUND Post dural puncture headache can be a debilitating complication of subarachnoid anaesthesia for a new mother. Successful management of post dural puncture headache requires adherence to clear policies and protocols with close follow up of patients by an experienced obstetric anaesthetist. OBJECTIVES To examine the cumulative incidence and severity of post dural puncture headache in obstetric patients who consented for spinal anaesthesia for Caesarean section. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. SUBJECTS All women who underwent Caesarean sections under spinal anaesthesia and fulfilled the inclusion criteria. SETTING Aga Khan University Hospital, a teaching and referral hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. RESULTS The overall cumulative incidence of post dural puncture headache was found to be 20.35 % but was significantly higher in patients in whom the quincke type of needle was used than in those whose spinal anaesthetics were administered using the pencil point needle (24.2% and 4.5% respectively: p=0.042). CONCLUSIONS The incidence of post dural puncture headache can be significantly reduced in the obstetric population at the Aga Khan University Hospital if the pencil point spinal needle was to be routinely used. We recommend that the Quincke needles should not be used in the obstetric population at the Aga Khan University Hospital.