Perfusion Index as a Predictor of Hypotension Following Sub-arachnoid Block Among Patients Undergoing Lower Segment Caesarean Section

C-section is one of the commonly performed surgical procedures. During this surgical procedure the surgeon cuts into uterine cavity through abdominal wall and takes out the baby. This is done by by making the lower half body of the patient numb by injecting local anesthesia drugs into the space surrounding the spinal cord. This allows the mother to remain awake and immediately bond with the baby once it gets delivered. Also this technique provides effective pain relief both during and after the surgery. However like any other technique or drug it is associated with a number of side effects. The most important being fall in blood pressure. There are numerous ways to treat it. However if one is able to predict fall in blood pressure before administration of anesthetic technique one can easily prevent it. One of the recently discovered novel way to predict fall in blood pressure is Perfusion index which is calculated by Pulse oximeter. It is a device use to check amount of oxygen in blood and heart rate. Perfusion index refers to the total amount of blood present in the limbs of the person. Once we administer drug in the space surrounding the spinal cord the amount of blood in the limbs increases while the amount returning to heart decreases which ultimately results in less amount of blood being pumped out by heart resulting in fall in blood pressure. Therefore theoretically those individuals who have a high baseline Perfusion index will more likely to develop low blood pressure. This study aims to identify the cut off value of perfusion index to predict fall in blood pressure.