Effects of Epidural
The topic i have chose is the risks of epidurals. This topic will be very interesting and fun to lean about.
The reason why i have chosen this topic is because I find it intresting for many reasons. A few are, first, that it was started with an injection of cocaine. Also, I have heard a lot about girls getting back pain, and many other complicatons from the epidural. The main reason I chose this topic was because I have not yet had a child myself, and still have not decided in which road I will take. It will be an interesting paper and I will enjoy writing it.
The first recorded use of an epidural was in 1885, when New York neurologist J. Leonard corning injected cocaine in the back of a patient suffering from spinal weakness and seminal incontinence(Hamilton, 2010). More than a century later, epidural has become the most popular method of analgesia, or pain relief, in U.S. hospitals. Epidurals involve the injection of a local anesthetic drug derived from cocaine into the space around the tough coverings that protect the spinal cord providing very effective pain relief during labor.
The drugs used in labor epidurals are powerful enough to numb, and even paralyze, the mother 's lower body, so it is not surprising that there can be significant side effects for mother and baby. These side effects range for minor to life threatening and depend, to some extent, on the specific drugs used. Epidurals offer laboring wemon the most effective form of pain relif avalible. However, satisfaction with pain relief does not equate with overall satisfaction with birth. Epidurals are also associated with major disruptions to the process of birth.
The most common side effect is a drop in blood pressure. This effect is almost universal and is usually preemted by administering IV fluids before placeing an epidural. Other common side effects of epidurals include inability to pass urine for up to 2/3 of women. Opiate drugs can cause unexspected breathing difficulties
The reason why i have chosen this topic is because I find it intresting for many reasons. A few are, first, that it was started with an injection of cocaine. Also, I have heard a lot about girls getting back pain, and many other complicatons from the epidural. The main reason I chose this topic was because I have not yet had a child myself, and still have not decided in which road I will take. It will be an interesting paper and I will enjoy writing it.
The first recorded use of an epidural was in 1885, when New York neurologist J. Leonard corning injected cocaine in the back of a patient suffering from spinal weakness and seminal incontinence(Hamilton, 2010). More than a century later, epidural has become the most popular method of analgesia, or pain relief, in U.S. hospitals. Epidurals involve the injection of a local anesthetic drug derived from cocaine into the space around the tough coverings that protect the spinal cord providing very effective pain relief during labor.
The drugs used in labor epidurals are powerful enough to numb, and even paralyze, the mother 's lower body, so it is not surprising that there can be significant side effects for mother and baby. These side effects range for minor to life threatening and depend, to some extent, on the specific drugs used. Epidurals offer laboring wemon the most effective form of pain relif avalible. However, satisfaction with pain relief does not equate with overall satisfaction with birth. Epidurals are also associated with major disruptions to the process of birth.
The most common side effect is a drop in blood pressure. This effect is almost universal and is usually preemted by administering IV fluids before placeing an epidural. Other common side effects of epidurals include inability to pass urine for up to 2/3 of women. Opiate drugs can cause unexspected breathing difficulties
References: 1. Hamilton,2010, In the arms of morpheus: The Development Of Morphine