Pudendal nerve block for pain relief in episiotomy repair

Injection of local anesthetic in the line of episiotomy incision is the generally used method for pain relief during reconstruction. There is no study comparing different methods regarding the pain relief during the episiotomy repair. We aimed to compare the efficacy of pudendal nerve block and local infiltration of 2% prilocaine in the relief of pain during episiotomy repair. Ninety pregnant women at the beginning of the first stage of labor were enrolled into this study. Group A (n=45) received conventional local infiltration of 5 ml 2% prilocaine in the line of the proposed incision of mediolateral episiotomy. Unilateral pudendal block was performed in patients Group B (n=45) with injection of 5 ml 2% prilocaine over the pudendal nerve with the help of a tubular director. Seven patients were excluded from the study with the diagnosis of pudendal nerve block failure (15.5%). All women were asked by a nurse who was blinded to patient group in order to rate the intensity of pain on a visual analog scale (VAS) of 100 mm at different stages of the procedure (T1–T5). (excerpt)