Epidural anesthesia. For or against?

Rather recently epidural anesthesia was considered as something exotic, but today this method of anesthesia is widely used both at natural childbirth, and at operational obstetric aid. There is such opinion that childbirth using anesthesia and not childbirth at all. For some reason it is considered that so delivery happens easier and quicker and does not demand the application of any efforts from the woman in labor. But it far not so. Process of introduction of epidural anesthesia looks as follows.

• During preparation the woman in labor needs to lay down sideways or to sit down, having curved at the same time a back.
• The anesthesiologist, having processed a back surface antiseptic drug, puts a prick for a local anesthesia.
• After drug begins the action, the doctor enters a slanted hollow needle into an epidural space of a backbone, into lumbar department, at the same time, without mentioning a spinal cord.
• The first dose of anesthetic is entered.
• Further the needle is replaced with a thin catheter on which further input of drug is carried out.
• The catheter is fixed on the patient's body.

Having hardly come to delivery room of hospital, future mothers state the consent, only, in favor of childbirth using epidural anesthesia. This method, as well as any other, possesses a number of positive and negative lines.

Perhaps, the most important advantage of epidural anesthesia is the fact that at its use the woman in labor remains in consciousness throughout all process of childbirth, can see at once the child, put it to a breast. The last, according to specialists — the most important point of childbirth at which close connection between the child and mother is established.

Not to lead someone into temptation and in order to avoid preference of childbirth using epidural anesthesia to childbirth natural without the medical indicators seen on that, it is worth talking also about shortcomings of this method.

And the first what it is necessary to mention, is an increase in a duration of delivery. In view of the fact that the woman in labor practically does not participate in process in any way, to the child is very difficult to cope to one.

Besides, special preparation – installation of a dropper for administration of solution is required that is not always convenient. We will not allow this method if the patient has any problems with a backbone or low coagulability of blood.

At administration of drug in a backbone a lot of things depend on experience and skill of the anesthesiologist who also has to dose skillfully drug since its surplus can have an adverse effect on health of the child. It is known that the surplus of anesthetic oppresses respiratory system of the kid.

Before finally to give preference in favor of the described method, it is necessary to consult with specialists: the doctor observing pregnancy and the anesthesiologist who will make the decision to the utmost suitable for the patient.