Around half of all first-time mothers and 35 percent of all births in Sweden choose epidural anaesthesia. It provides effective pain relief and has been shown to reduce the risk of complications in women after childbirth.
Previous studies have examined various aspects of the method and the risks to children and women. But researchers in Scotland have now taken a closer look at brain damage, respiratory problems, cerebral palsy and death in children.
They analysed data from nearly 500,000 births in Scotland over a 13-year period. The study included women who gave birth vaginally or by unplanned caesarean section between weeks 24 and 42 of pregnancy.
An epidural was used in one in four of the births analysed. Overall, serious neurological conditions were rare in children, affecting fewer than 1 in 1,000 children. They were not more common among children whose mothers had an epidural.
The conclusion is that epidurals do not increase the risk of sepsis, low Apgar scores at five minutes (showing how the baby is doing after birth, where higher scores are better), death within 28 days, or cerebral palsy in childhood.
The study, published in the journal BMJ, is an observational study and cannot establish cause and effect. But the researchers write that their findings should reassure parents and clinicians that epidurals are safe for children.
