The influence of epidural analgesia on the progress and outcome of labor in nulliparous women. A retrospective study

Nowadays, there are many methods of analgesia for pain relief during labour. The most prevalent is considered to be the use of epidural analgesia. Aim: To investigate the effects of epidural analgesia on the duration of the 1st and 2nd stage of labor, the progress of labor and the relation with demographic and other factors on a sample of nulliparous women. Methology: Retrospective study with data collection from medical records of women who gave birth in Hippocrateion General Hospital of Thessaloniki from 1-1-2013 to 30-9-2013. Data concerned 110 nulliparous women without the use of analgesia during labor (control group) and 143 nulliparous women who used epidural analgesia. SPSS 19.0 Program and Microsoft Excel were used for the statistical analysis. Results: Older women chose to undergo epidural analgesia in labour more often than younger (29.04± 5.3years vs 25.24± 5.7 years, p=0.000). The mean duration of the first and second stage of labour and the use of oxytocin was statistically increased in the epidural group (p<0.05). The frequency of episiotomies was higher in the control group, (95% vs 70% for epidural group, p=0.000). There were no significant differences in Apgar Score of newborns in both groups. Conclusions: Epidural analgesia significantly prolongs the duration of the 1st and 2nd stage of labor in nulliparous women, but without significant negative effect on the outcome of labor or the state of the newborn

Keywords: Εpidural analgesia, labour, nulliparous women