Comparative Analysis of Unilateral Subarachnoid Block with Ankle Block for Elective Foot Surgery

Background:There are many accepted anesthesia techniques for elective foot surgery ranging from general anesthesia to regional anesthesia, regional anesthesia being the preferred method. Regional anesthesia techniques employed for foot surgery includes subarachnoid block, epidural anesthesia and ankle block.

Objective: The present study is aimed at providing comparative analysis of ankle block with unilateral subarachnoid block for elective foot surgeries in terms of hemodynamic safety profile and post operative analgesia.

Material and Methods: Study includes prospective analysis of 80 ASA II and III patients who underwent elective foot surgery. Patients were randomly divided into two groups of 40 each, Ankle block group (AB) and Unilateral subarachnoid group (US). The parameters recorded for study includes systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, visual analogue scale for pain severity, time of first analgesic need and the complications.

Results: There were minimal blood pressure changes and heart rate variability in AB group as compared to US group when compared with basal values (p<0.05). The time for first analgesic requirement is prolonged in AB group as compared to US group. The visual analogue scale score was assessed at 2^nd, 4^th and 6^th hours for group AB were lowered as compared to group US (p < 0.05).

Conclusion: Ankle block is associated with lesser hemodynamic variations and better postoperative analgesia as compared to unilateral subarachnoid block.