The impact of epidural anesthesia on the outcome of childbirth: experience from the maternite les dix Lunes.

Abstract

Objective: Evaluate the impact of epidural analgesia on obstetric characteristics, labor progression, mode of delivery, and neonatal outcomes.
Methodology: A monocentric descriptive and analytical retrospective cohort study was conducted at "maternite Les Dix Lunes" unit of the EpiCura Hospital Center (Ath) between January 2015 and December 2021. All vaginal deliveries with or without epidural analgesia were included. Planned cesarean sections were excluded. Two groups were compared: deliveries without epidural analgesia (control group) and deliveries with epidural analgesia (experimental group). Statistical analyses were performed using Excel(R) 2016 and IBM SPSS(R) version 29.
Results: A total of 4,706 deliveries were analyzed, including 2,735 (58.1%) without epidural analgesia and 1,971 (41.9%) with epidural analgesia. Epidural use was significantly associated with primiparity, labor induction, and a higher incidence of uterine contractility abnormalities. Instrumental deliveries, particularly vacuum-assisted extractions, were more frequent in the epidural group, whereas the rate of emergency cesarean section was higher among women without epidural analgesia. Neonatal outcomes were overall comparable between the two groups.
Conclusion: Epidural analgesia is associated with specific modifications in labor progression, without a significant adverse impact on neonatal outcomes. These findings support the safety and effectiveness of this widely used obstetric analgesic technique.