Effect of Dexamethasone as an adjuvant to Bupivacaine in caudal block for Postoperative Analgesia in Pediatric Patients undergoing Orchidopexy

Abstract Background Regional anesthetic techniques are commonly used to facilitate pain control in pediatric surgical procedures. The most commonly used technique in pediatrics is caudal block. Urogenital surgeries are one of the most frequently performed surgical procedures in the pediatric population. Using optimal analgesic regimen provides safe and effective analgesia, reduce postoperative stress response and accelerate recovery from surgery. Aim of the Work to evaluate the analgesic effect of dexamethasone when given as an adjuvant to caudal block in children undergoing orchidopexy surgery. Patients and Methods The study was conducted on 40 randomly chosen patients in Ain Shams University Hospitals after approval of the medical ethical committee. Patients were divided randomly into two groups; each group consisted of 20 patients. Results revealed that dexamethasone 0.1 mg/kg, when used as an adjuvant to caudal anesthesia, can significantly prolong the duration of postoperative analgesia. It is better than bupivacaine alone in caudal block at similar doses in controlling postoperative pain. Conclusion we can conclude that adding 0.1 mg/kg of dexamethasone to 0.5 ml/kg of 0.25% bupivacaine effectively improves the analgesic duration in single-shot caudal anesthesia.