Labour Epidural Analgesia: Patient Satisfaction and Outcome of Labour at a Quaternary Care Center - A Prospective Observational Study

Abstract

Background and Aims: Patient satisfaction during labour is a multifactorial entity which is difficult to quantify. This study was undertaken to assess patient knowledge, satisfaction and attitude towards labour epidural in a quaternary care center in South India. Methods: After getting approval from Institutional Ethics Committee, we included 120 parturients admitted for delivery at our institution between January 2017 and June 2019 in the prospective observational study. Demographic details and vital parameters were obtained at admission. Twenty-four hours after delivery under labour epidural analgesia, a questionnaire was distributed to them. All continuous variable were compared using unpaired “t” test / Mann–Whitney test between groups and paired “t” test within groups at various follow-ups. Pearson Chi-square test, Fisher's exact test was used to find the association between the categorical variable. Results: 87.5% of our study population gave opinion of being satisfied or above regarding labour epidural analgesia. Adequate pain relief (p<0.001), timely introduction of epidural, (p<0.001), and absence of side effects were the major factors influencing satisfaction in our study. We did not find any association between demographic variables, mode of delivery and satisfaction. Conclusion: Maternal satisfaction is a complex phenomenon. Epidural labour analgesia has created an increased satisfaction among parturients by providing them a pain free labour. Proper education of patients and creating a core team for labour analgesia can improve maternal satisfaction.