Comparative study of diclofenac, paracetamol infusion, or a combination in post-caesarean patients for pain management

Abstract

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) has released fresh information showing that the number of caesarean sections performed worldwide has increased and now accounts for more than one in five (21%) deliveries. 89.8% of women experienced significant post-operative discomfort following a caesarean section and 84.2% reported to have moderate to severe pain. This study aimed to compare diclofenac, paracetamol infusion, and a combination of both in patients of post-caesarean for pain management. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional study carried out in the department of obstetrics and gynaecology at a tertiary care hospital in a rural area of Panipat, Haryana. A total number of 102 women who underwent caesarean section were taken for the study. They were divided into 3 groups each having 34 women. The first group was given diclofenac, the second was given paracetamol infusion and the third was given a combination of both for pain management. Results: In our study we have done visual analog score (VAS) scoring at 0, 1, 6, 12, 18 and 24 hours and we found that the mean VAS score in group 3 was highest when compared to other two groups. We also found that on comparing data of VAS score between the three groups the p value came out to significant that is p≤0.001. Conclusions: We found that combination therapy had good results in comparison to individual therapy and had fewer side effects.