Nitrous oxide and intravenous opioids
Both are options. Both relieve less pain than an epidural.
Both relieve less pain than an epidural. Neither is adequate anesthesia for a cesarean, so if surgery becomes necessary you will still need a spinal, an epidural top-up or a general anesthetic.
Where this comes from:
6. Likis FE, Andrews JC, Collins MR, et al. Nitrous oxide for the management of labor pain: a systematic review. Anesth Analg. 2014;118(1):153-167.
7. Ullman R, Smith LA, Burns E, Mori R, Dowswell T. Parenteral opioids for maternal pain relief in labour. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2010;(9):CD007396.
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This page is educational. It supports the conversation with your own clinicians. It is not consent to any treatment, and it cannot assess you.