The Dangers Of Epidural Anesthesia

Four years later, I got pregnant. I was nervous, scared and anxious. The doctor I saw said that I could have a VBAC(vaginal birth after c-section). I raided the library and read books on that subject. It was then I found out that the United States had the highest incidence of C-sections in the world. Research shows that epidurals increase the use of other interventions that themselves carry risks. These interventions include electronic fetal monitoring (which has shown to increase the likelihood of a cesarean without improving outcome), I. V oxytocin, and instrumental delivery. Epidurals also deprive women of a sense of mastery over labor. Goer, Henci. "Epidurals Myth Vs Reality." Childbirth Instructor Magazine Winter 1995: 17-22

Giving birth should be a beautiful experience even though delivery can be terrifying and discomfort. Even though women have the decision to choose between having a natural childbirth or get an epidural majority of women give birth at a hospital get an epidural. Make sure when you base your decision on what’s best for your infant and not base off anyone influencing you. What constitutes a “Natural childbirth”? A natural childbirth is when a woman gives birth without any medication. You can choose between having a mid-wife and having an at home birth or you can give birth at the hospital without any medication either way is consider giving natural childbirth. According to Kristeen, an epidural is drugs called local anesthetics, such as bupivacaine, chloroprocaine, or liocaine it numbs the abdomen or pelvic region during labor. An epidural is given when the women is about 4 or 5 centimeters dilated (Cherney, par.2-6). In order to get an epidural you have to get a shot in your spine (lower back). In 1909, the first caudal anaesthesia was given for labor pains by a German obstetrical, Walter Stoeckel, and he study 141 cases of healthy laboring women with epidurals. In 1931, the first catheter was used in an epidural. By the 1940s, epidural were being used sporadically for labor but did not gain true momentum until the 1970s. This was in large part due to the fact that other

A commonly known procedure when it comes to hospital births are epidurals. An epidural is an injection of a drug between the “epidural space” which causes

There is enough footage and personal stories of childbirth for anyone to know how excruciating it can be to give birth. This could be one reason why more mothers are asking for epidural anesthesia in order to avoid labor pain. This medication is injected into a small space outside the spinal cord in the lower back. Why is this becoming more popular and is it even safe?

It is unfair to the newborn to reap consequences because the mother decided to receive a pain free delivery. Epidurals take 2.7 hours to leave an adult body but it takes over 8 hours for a newborn. Some babies still had the epidural medication within their bloodstream up to 30 hours later. If an epidural causes immobility within in the women, then it causes the same for the baby. It causes the baby to become lethargic, decrease its heart rate, and poor latching after birth. No mother wants their baby to suffer. Doctor fail to tell women how a medicated assist birth can cause more complication than assistants. The epidural causes labor to decrease which causes an increased risk for the doctor to have to use delivery instruments. The use of delivery instruments such as birthing vacuum or forceps increase the chance of injuring the baby. Short term bruising, facial injuries, and displacement of skull bones have occurred with the use of the delivery instruments. This can simply be avoided by women having non-medicated births. Not everyone would

Epidural anesthesia is the most popular method of pain relief during labor. More women request an epidural than any other method of pain relief. More women giving birth use epidural anesthesia. The purpose of an epidural is to stipulate numbness and relief of pain. Epidurals restrict nerve impulses from the lower spine.

According to the authors (Tussey, et. Al., 2015) “Because limited research is available on the use of exercise or peanut balls with women with an epidural, the research question was generated from a growing trend in hospital labor and birth units to use such balls” (p. 22).

I picked this article because I am curious on what the side effects of an epidural are because of I’ve always known about the pros of Epidurals and how it is a successful pain reliever. An epidural makes the person so numb that it's hard to contract and push adequately and this makes the labor longer. With the labor process increasing it leads to cesarean which has more side effects and the recovering time longer than natural birth which impacts the mother and baby bond for the first couple days. a study that was done with women babies for the first time during the second phase stage of labor was much longer coming at 336 minutes with an epidural. Women that choose natural birth had 197 minutes of labor this was a difference of 2 hours and

Now as a Massage Therapy student I find it intriguing to learn about the role of a Massage Therapist in pregnancy and labor as possible future profession. I found this study interesting as it is relatively unique in nature and it addresses a topic in need of validation. I hope further research is pursued on the topic and would be interested in completing my own similar research in the future as a professional therapist. The study report was professionally written, but still easy to read and understand with limited medical knowledge of pregnancy and labor. Having a general understanding of the benefits of massage, it was reasonable to anticipate that massage would have a beneficial impact on how participants experienced pain and potentially epidural use. After reviewing this study it appears the hypothesis was rational, but results were ultimately limited by small sample size and considered statistically insignificant. However, this study did demonstrate clinical relevance to the practice of Massage Therapists and their involvement in managing labor pain. Subsequent research is required to further substantiate the hypothesis proposed in this

Pharmacological comfort measures can provide partial or complete pain relief. The epidural is the most efficient way of reducing labor pain. Opioids can be given continuously or in intermittent doses at the patient 's request or through the patient controlled pump. There is the potential for these drugs to have some effect on the fetus, such as breathing difficulties that may require assistance through the use of Narcan. Providing pain relief during the labor process is solely the patient’s choice, and as the nurse only support and encouragement should be given for however she chooses to handle the pain. (Jansen, Gibson, Bowles, & Leach, 2013)

The most effective and beneficial route of administration for epidural steroids remain controversial as discussed in several studies. But among the three approaches as mentioned above, the transforaminal approach requires the smallest volume to reach the primary site of pathology, and the interlaminar approach is the most commonly

Water is used in many forms during labour. A warm bath can be used in the latent stage to ease pain and distress. While cold water can be used to wipe the brow of a labouring woman giving a cooling effect and also dowsing the perineum with warm or cold water to relief stinging as it stretches. Water birth is seen by many as a natural, gentle way of leaving the womb. Due to the fact that all humans start life enclosed in warm liquor and that many people throughout life find that water has a relaxing analgesic effect (Hatfield, 2013). One study of 3000 women found that water can even reduce the need for an epidural (Cluett & Ethel, 2009). Water is at the present time a well-known form of pain relief available

Unfortunately, there are certain conditions during which the use of CNB could be challenging to implement. Nagelhout and Plaus mention that there is a known correlation between maternal obesity and a greater failure rate of epidural anesthetics in these patients. They also point out that the use of neuraxial anesthesia is particularly suitable in this population due to their high potential for a difficult airway, as well as their increased rate of cesarean sections. Interestingly, although the distance between the skin to epidural space increases as the body mass index (BMI) increases, and thus potentially making the placement of an epidural more difficult, some studies have found that the inability to palpate the landmarks or lack of proper patient positioning were stronger predictors of difficulty than the practitioner’s experience and the patient’s

There was no statistically significant difference between the 2 groups of the study as regards their demographic data (age, BMI, sex, and ASA classification), type and duration of surgeries (Table 1). All anesthetic and surgical procedures were completed without any major complication, Anesthesia was inadequate, requiring conversion to general anesthesia and excluded from the study, in 5 cases of CSA group and in 3 cases of CEA group. In CSA group; patients were excluded from the study because of technical problems (1 catheter obstruction; 2 accidental dural punctures with Crawford needle; 2 inability to insert the catheter) and the first dose was not administered. In CEA group; 2 patients did not achieve the desired level of anesthesia after the initial epidural injection and the additional doses of 5 mL (till the maximum of 25 mL). In another patient, no blockade was achieved in the twenty minutes after the first injection and anesthetic failure was documented.

A first time pregnant woman in labor who has limited medical knowledge about episiotomy may become frighten when all of a sudden as she is actively pushing, the provider tells her stop because the passageway to let the baby out is narrow, therefore he/she is going to perform a procedure which involves an incision made to the vagina that will assist the birthing process, therefore allowing the baby to be delivered easily and preventing further complications. This might be really frightening to the patient due to her limited knowledge and prior misconceptions about the procedure.