More women are receiving pain relief during labor

AORN Journal, Jan, 2006

More women are taking advantage of the increasingly varied and sophisticated pain relief options during childbirth, according to a Sept 19, 2005, news release from the American Society of Anesthesiologists. Researchers examined survey responses from 378 hospitals that provided obstetric services in 2001, grouping the hospitals according to the number of births per year (ie, 1,500 or more, 500 to 1,499, and fewer than 500).

The results showed that only 6% to 10% of mothers went without analgesia during Labor in 2001, compared to 11% to 33% of mothers in 1992. Regional analgesia, including epidural, spinal or combined epidural-spinal techniques, accounted for 76% of anesthesia services provided in the larger hospitals and 57% of services in smaller hospitals, representing a significant increase since 1992. For deliveries by cesarean section, use of spinal anesthesia increased, use of epidural anesthesia decreased, and general anesthesia stilt was being used in 15% to 30% of emergency cases. Mothers in 2001 were less likely to receive parenteral narcotics as their only source of pain relief.

Hospitals that performed more deliveries generally had fewer mothers going without analgesia in both 1992 and 2001. As more women have become interested in using techniques that can make them more comfortable during labor, the demand for anesthesia services has increased. In hospitals providing care for 1,500 or more births during 2001, an anesthesiologist was involved in 95% of cases. Other providers of anesthesia care included certified RN anesthetists and, in a very small percentage of cases, obstetricians.

Women Are Receiving More Pain Relief During Labor (news release, Chicago, Ill: American Society of Anesthesiologists, Sept 19, 2005) http://www.asahq.org/news /news091905.htm (accessed 20 Oct 2005).