Lignocaine Versus Ropivacaine Infiltration for Postpartum Perineal Pain

BACKGROUND Millions of women worldwide undergo postpartum perineal repair under local infiltration. Inadequate postpartum pain management can negatively impact a mother's physical and psychological recovery. AIMS To study and compare the analgesic effect and maternal satisfaction with lignocaine versus ropivacaine infiltration for postpartum perineal pain relief. MATERIALS AND METHODS After clearance from the Institutional Ethics Committee, a double-blind prospective randomized study carried out on 100 parturients of aged 18-40 years who had spontaneous vaginal delivery, comparing 1% lignocaine and 0.75% ropivacaine infiltration for the repair of selective episiotomy or perineal injury. Time of the first analgesic (TFA) demand, maternal satisfaction at 24 h, and visual analog scale (VAS) pain score were studied. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS Chi-square test and Student's t-test were used and P < 0.05 was considered as significant. RESULTS VAS pain score was significantly lower at 2 and 4 h in ropivacaine group versus lignocaine group (P < 0.0001). Significantly, longer TFA (10.2 ± 1.54 vs. 2.20 ± 0.44 h, P < 0.0001) and higher percentage of maternal satisfaction (86% vs. 44%) were observed in ropivacaine as compared to lignocaine group (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS Prolonged analgesia and higher rate of maternal satisfaction were found when ropivacaine infiltration was used for perineal repair as compared to lignocaine.