Spinal analgesia for instrumental delivery. A comparison with pudendal nerve block.

One hundred and eighty-three patients undergoing instrumental delivery were randomly divided into two groups, one of which received low spinal anaesthesia and the other pudendal nerve block for delivery. Both were administered by the operator. No patient who received spinal anaesthesia experienced pain. 62% of patients who had a rotational delivery under pudendal nerve block experienced severe pain; 15% had pain during direct delivery. Hypotension was not observed. The incidence of postnatal complications was similar in each group. Low spinal anaesthesia in the hands of the operator provided superior anaesthesia with no increase in complications.