Bupivacaine With Dexmedetomidine Versus Bupivacaine Alone for Transversus Abdominis Plane Block for Post-operative Analgesia in Patients Undergoing Caesarean Section: A Comparative Study.

Peripheral nerve block is becoming increasingly popular technique for postoperative pain relief and is also established as a part of multimodal analgesia and enhanced recovery program. Transversus abdominis plane (TAP) block is a regional technique for providing analgesia of the anterolateral abdominal wall. TAP block are commonly given in patients who have undergone various abdominal as well as pelvic surgeries such as caesarean section, hysterectomy, appendicectomy and various laparoscopic surgeries.The Purpose of a TAP block is to infiltrate local anaesthetic agents in the plane between the internal oblique and transversus abdominis muscles thereby providing effective postoperative analgesia. Earlier the blind TAP block (through lumbar triangle of Petit) was commonly given but with widespread use of ultrasound nowadays it is almost always given under ultrasound guidance. Accuracy and efficacy of TAP block is significantly improved under ultrasound guidance because under ultrasound guidance the anesthetic agent can be properly deposited in the neurovascular plane. Ultrasound provides real time and direct visualisation of needle during infiltration of local anaesthetic drug.