PMID: 2091862Dec 1, 1990Paper

Maintaining epidural anesthesia by the midwife

Curationis
C Dörfling, A G Nolte

Abstract

Epidural anaesthesia as a method of pain relief during labour has lately become very popular. Statistics show that in some labour units up to 70 per cent of all patients undergo epidural anaesthesia. The popularity of this method can be attributed to its effectiveness in relieving pain during labour. The anaesthetist commences an epidural block by introducing an epidural catheter into the epidural space. The anaesthetist administers the test dose and the first therapeutic dose. Within a short duration of time (10 to 20 minutes) the patient can already experience the numbing effect of the anaesthetic. This anaesthetic loses its numbing effect within two to three hours and effective pain relief can only be achieved by administering a further dose of local anaesthetic via the epidural catheter. This procedure can be repeated between three to six times during the average duration of labour. Alternatively, a continuous epidural infusion procedure can be used. The last method, however, sometimes requires the administration of additional epidural "top-ups". There are some risks in administering additional "top-up" dosages. The possibility exists of the anaesthetic causing a spinal block as a result of being administered into the spina...Continue Reading

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