Is Sphenopalatine Ganglion Block Treatment Effective on Postspinal Headaches

Spinal anesthesia is known subarachnoid block also commonly used regional anesthesia technic. Spinal anesthesia is frequently performed in obstetric patients undergoing cesarian section, which has several advantages including less deep vein thrombosis incidence, low opioid requirement, early mobilization and early lactation also has some complications too. Postdural headache is one of the most known complications of spinal anesthesia. The etiology of the postspinal headache remains unclear. Severeness of the symptoms and amount of the cerebrospinal fluid leakage have been found positive correlating. The cerebrospinal fluid supports brain with it's mass effect. When a leakage of the fluid occurs, support of the brain decreases and pain sensitive structures of the brain gets more sensitive. In this condition 5 th 9th and 10 th cranial nerves, falks cerebelli, tentorium and blood vessels are affected most. Decreased cerebrospinal fluid volume causes decreased brain volume and compensatory mechanisms lead to cerebral venous dilatation. Conservative treatments are iv hydration, analgesic agents, caffeine or theophylline. Epidural blood patch is the gold standard for the treatment . However epidural blood patch is an invasive technic and has some complications such as dural puncture, infection and neurologic trauma. Sphenopalatine ganglion is one of the four parasympathetic thin ganglion in skull. Parasympathetic fibers innervates cerebral and meningeal blood vessels which cause vasodilatation and stimulate nociceptor activation on meninges. Consequently headache is related with sensory cortex. Transnasal SPG block is performed successfully in chronic pain syndromes including migraine, cluster headaches and atypic face pain. Likewise the SPG block is performed in acute treatment of postspinal headache. However gold standard of the treatment is epidural blood patching which is interventional and has many risks. Several studies enrolled limited participants offer SPG block primarily in the literature.