How many cm can you have an epidural

Transition is the really intense bit when lots of women ask for epidurals. This is not the only area where there is disagreement. The most common reason for women to be denied an epidural is because of a lack in midwife numbers. We have a drastic national shortage of midwives — the NHS in England is short of the equivalent of almost 2, full-time midwives. My obstetrics unit should have 10 midwives but often operates with half that - and sometimes less.

Bogod suggests another reason for women being denied epidurals. Bogod points to the scandal at Morecambe Bay , where babies and mothers died preventable deaths, at least partly because midwives had a focus on making women give birth without medical intervention.

He also points to the leaked interim report of the scandal at Shrewsbury and Telford hospital NHS trust , where similar allegations have been made about malpractice.

Lessons have been learned from these tragedies. Despite this, University Hospitals Bristol NHS trust was criticised this month for advising pregnant women to avoid having epidurals. The country voted for a decade of austerity, so how can I be surprised by staff shortages? Women in labour being refused epidurals, official inquiry finds. There are a lot of stories about women being too far along to get an epidural, but this is a myth. You can get an epidural any time you want.

The local numbing agent alleviates most of the pain you may feel during the epidural. Most women feel pressure and a stinging sensation as the epidural medication is injected through the needle. It was thought that if an epidural was placed before 4 centimeters dilated, it would cause a woman to need a C-section for delivery. Recent randomized studies over the past few years have not found the epidural to be correlated with the mother needing a C-section.

These studies were so profound that it encouraged The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists ACOG to change their guidelines in to reflect these findings. If labor does slow down after your epidural, you may be given Pitocin , a synthetic version of oxytocin which is a natural hormone that helps your uterus contract during labor. Speak with your doctor about your different options for epidural medication and your dosage.

However, an epidural does change the game when it comes to pushing. This is where the nursing staff can help. Epidurals can last for several hours after delivery.

Depending on the dosage and type of epidural, the lower half of your body may still be numb after birth. Let each patient decide when to have an epidural during childbirth. That's the advice of the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group based on a recent meta-analysis. The advice contradicts some previous evidence that suggested early epidurals could prolong labor and increase C-section rates. Those who had early epidurals were no more or less likely to need a C-section than those who had late epidurals, the researchers concluded.