Side effects of epidural long-term
- how painful is epidural
- how painful is epidural injection
- how painful is epidural reddit
- how painful is epidural steroid injection
Epidural side effects!
What is an epidural?
An epidural is used for giving pain relief. It is often used in childbirth but it can also be used during surgery to supplement a general anaesthetic, and it is continued after the operation for pain control.
How does an epidural work?
During an epidural, an anaesthetist uses a needle to place a fine plastic tube (an epidural catheter) into somewhere called the epidural space.
The epidural space is the area the spinal nerves pass through to the lower back close to the spine.
Local anaesthetic, and sometimes other pain relief drugs, are put through the epidural catheter.
Epidural needle
This lies close to the nerves in the back. As a result, the nerve messages are blocked. This gives the pain relief, which varies in extent according to the amount and type of drug given. The local anaesthetic may cause some numbness as well as pain relief.
An epidural pump is used to give pain relief drugs continuously through the epidural catheter.
The pain relief lasts as long as the pump is running. When it is stopped, full feeling will return within a few hours.