Today i'm having my second elective cesarean section
I can't wait to meet our second baby!!
Now that we're here, i'm starting to feel nervous and scared, especially about the pain after
Last time I had so much pain afterwards and needed lots of pain medication
Everything will be ok, but lets talk to the staff to get more information
Hi we're your anaesthetic team, i'm the nurse and this is the anaethetist
we're here to manage your pain
I understand you are scared about the pain you may feel, but here we use a variety of methods to help manage any pain you may have, this includes the use of ilioinguinal-transversus abdominis plane nerve blocks aka an I-TAP block
A nerve block that sounds scary,How is this performed?
First I will locate the correct area to inject this is 2 cm medial and 2 cm superior to the anterior superior iliac spine. Once I feel a fascial pop I will inject 10ml Ropivacaine 0.33%. the local anaesthetic will be injected between the internal and external oblique muscles.
We will then advance the needle until a second fascial pop is felt and will then inject 20ml Ropivacaine 0.33% into the transverse abdominis plane. This is done on both sides.
I've had a TAP block before, Why not just do that again?
I can help with this one! Studies have found that a TAP block may not completly cover the nerves T10-LI, An I-TAP block may be more reliable as a more anterior approach is taken
There are minimal risks accociated with this procedure and studies have shown a 59% reduction in post-op Fentanyl usage and a decrease in pain scores both on movement and at rest
Ok, lets do it!
24 HOURS LATER
I havn't needed anywhere near as much Fentanly as last time
I'm a big sister!
Yeah, and you also havn't had as much pain overall whenever you've moved
Having a spinal anaesthetic, suppositries and the I-TAP has made this a great experience and my pain has been really well managed
There are minimal side effects and the I-Tap can be performed quickly
I-TAP nerve blocks in conjunction with a spinal anaesthetic and suppository medications has been shown to reducde post-operative PCA Fentanyl usage and decrease post-op pain on movement and at rest
The use of a more anterior approach may make it more reliable then an TAP block
Staker, J, Carlson, D, Lim, A, Liu, D, Church, R,Panahkhahi, M & LeCong, T 2018, ‘A triple-blind, placebo-controlled randomised trial of the ilioinguinal-transversus abdominis plane (I-TAP) nerveblock for elective caesarean section’, Anaesthesia,vol. 73, no. 5, pp. 594–602, viewed 1 September 2019, UTAS Library