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This animation shows how an epidural is given during childbirth.
Epidural analgesia relieves pain without putting you to sleep.
It's usually given early in labour.
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You will be asked to either lie on your side, with your knees drawn up to your tummy
and your chin tucked in,
or to sit up on the bed and lean forward.
Both positions open up the spaces between the bones in your lower back.
Your anaesthetist carefully selects a point to inject
by feeling for specific bones in the spine.
He or she may mark this site with a pen
to show where to put the injection.
Your anaesthetist will inject a small amount of local anaesthetic
into your skin.
This completely blocks feeling in the area.
When the skin is numb, a larger epidural needle
is passed into the epidural space,
which is the space outside the membranes that surround the spinal cord.
When the needle reaches the correct spot,
a fine plastic tube (cannula) is inserted through
the centre of the needle.
The needle is then removed
and the tube is left running from the epidural space to the outside.
The tube is held in place with adhesive tape.
Your anaesthetist uses the tube to inject local anaesthetic
or other pain relief medicines directly into the epidural space.
Your anaesthetist may attach a pump to the tube
so that you can have a top up when it's needed.
It may be possible to control this yourself.
This is called patient-controlled analgesia (PCA).
When the need for pain relief has passed, the tube is carefully taken out and
the area is covered with a plaster.
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