Ask for a 'safe' epidural

[tweetypye]

I was with a friend today who was telling me about a conversation she had with her dad. He is an anaesthetist (the man who gives you the pain relief) and he was telling her about all the incidents that happen with epidurals some of which are fatal.

Apparently these incidents are becoming more common, so much so that the NHS has to alter its procedures and the products they use.

What she did tell me was that there is a system called Neurax that is completely safe and she said that anyone who is thinking of having an epidural should ask if the maternity unit uses this system when giving epidurals. I know I will if I have another baby as I don?t want injecting with the wrong drug by mistake!!

If you have friends that are pregnant then this is definitely worth passing onto them!

I think your friend is getting a bit muddled!!

It may well be the case that certain details of the procedure may differ in places, but there is no such thing as a guaranteed 'safe' epidural; its an invasive procedure, highly medicalised, which carries an increased risk of the cascade of interventions, such as forceps , episiotomy, cs. Cases of major permanent injury or fatality to the mother are extremely rare so its probably not a risk anyone thinks about too much when having one. I think most people who avoid them are more concerned about risks involving the baby.

The only 100% way to guarantee avoiding the risks of an epidural is not to have one!

I've just looked it up and it is worth bearing in mind. The Neurax system is completely incompatible with lines/drug bags that are supposed to go into a vein, so using it means you can't have the mistake of a drug meant for the blood going into the spine (has happened!).

www.neurax.co.uk/

Not sure whether the anaethetist would be impressed at being told what equipment to use though! I suppose you could ask before labour if this system is routinely used at your hospital.

it is not common that the administering of an epidural leads to a fatality

in a maternity unit where a fatality has occurred, procedures etc will be put into place to stop it occurring again, it is not just ignored

drugs etc are usually double checked and signed off, thre are procedures in place anyway to avoid such instances.

anyone with concerns should of course raise them, but presuming you are going ot be given a fatal epidural is a bit OTT