Evaluation of Pain Management in the Patients after Caesarean Section in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Objective: To evaluate the management of pain after caesarean section in order to improve our practices.

Patients and Methods: Prospective cross-sectional survey in the gynecology and obstetrics department of the Bogodogo University Teaching Hospital of Bogodogo (UTH-B) in Ouagadougou from 27 February to 28 May 2022. All women who had a caesarean section during the study period and who gave informed consent were included in the study.

Results: During the study period, 196 patients underwent caesarean section.

The mean age of our patients was 26 years, with extremes of 16 and 44 years. The 26-30 age group was the most represented, with 96 patients (48.9%). Caesarean section was performed urgently in 164 patients (83.7%). The majority of patients (95.4%) had undergone spinal anesthesia. All patients reported moderate to severe pain 6 hours after the operation. An almost similar finding was made 12 hours after the operation (96.9%), while 24 hours after the operation the pain was considered to be mild to moderate by the patients. All our post-caesarean patients received analgesics. Diclofenac suppository (100.0%) and nefopam (92.9%) were the most commonly prescribed analgesics. Co-administration of injectable nefopam and diclofenac suppository was the most frequent in our patients (81.6%). Post-caesarean treatment lasted 48 hours in most patients (161 women, 82.1%). During analgesic treatment, only 20 patients experienced adverse effects such as dizziness (11 cases) and nausea (9 cases).

Conclusion: Pain after caesarean section is experienced as very intense by our patients. Assessment and management of this pain should be a major concern.