[Cardiotocographic changes in epidural analgesia with bupivacaine]

During the first stage of labor in a large number of births, temporarily pathologic patterns become manifest in the cardiotocogram after epidural analgesia. Statistical comparisons showed a significant level of correlation (in the region of 1%) between pathologic heart rate pattern and a fall in blood pressure after the main epidural dose (in all cases, premedication was given before commencement of analgesia). This jeopardy to the fetus in the first 20-30 minutes after administration of the main dose, visible in the cardiotocogram, makes it imperative for the clinician to pay the utmost attention to all women in labor during this period, not just those regarded as risk patients. After 10-20 minutes, labor is intensified, and this can coincide with possible jeopardy to the fetus. As this change in the course of labor manifests itself inordinately strongly in the labor-frequency parameter, and since absolute intrauterine pressure did not represent a threat to life in any of the cases described here, the authors feel that monitoring of labor by external tocometry is sufficient for clinical needs.