The amnestic value of diazepam at forceps delivery. A preliminary report

The Birth Memories and Recall Questionnaire (BirthMARQ): development and evaluation

Background

Childbirth is a challenging and emotive experience that is accompanied by strong positive and/or negative emotions. Memories of birth may be associated with how women cognitively process birth events postpartum and potentially their adaptation to parenthood. Characteristics of memories for birth may also be associated with postnatal psychological wellbeing. This paper reports the development and evaluation of a questionnaire to measure characteristics of memories of childbirth and to examine the relationship between memories for birth and mental health.

Methods

The Birth Memories and Recall Questionnaire (BirthMARQ) was developed by generating items from literature reviews and general measures of memory characteristics to cover dimensions relevant to childbirth. Fifty nine items were administered to 523 women in the first year after childbirth (M = 23.7 weeks) as part of an online study of childbirth. Validity of the final scale was checked by examining differences between women with and without probable depression and PTSD.

Results

Principal components analysis identified 23 items representing six aspects of memory accounting for 64% of the variance. These were: Emotional memory, Centrality of memory to identity, Coherence, Reliving, Involuntary recall, and Sensory memory. Reliability was good (M alpha = .80). Women with probable depression or PTSD reported more emotional memory, centrality of memories and involuntary recall. Women with probable depression also reported more reliving, and those with probable PTSD reported less coherence and sensory memory.

Conclusion

The results suggest the BirthMARQ is a coherent and valid measure of the characteristics of memory for childbirth which may be important in postnatal mood and psychopathology. While further testing of its reliability and validity is needed, it is a measure capable of becoming a valuable tool for examining memory characteristics in the important context of childbirth.

Analgesia for forceps delivery

BACKGROUND

A forceps delivery may be indicated when a fetus fails to progress to delivery, or when delivery needs to be expedited in the second stage of labour. Effective analgesia is required to ensure that the woman is comfortable throughout the delivery, to allow the obstetrician to safely perform the procedure. It is currently unclear what the most effective and safe agent or method is to provide pain relief during forceps delivery.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the effectiveness and safety of different analgesic agents and methods available for forceps delivery for women and their babies.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group's Trials Register (31 July 2013), reviewed published guidelines and searched the reference lists of review articles.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised controlled trials comparing an analgesic agent or method used for forceps delivery with placebo/no treatment or an alternative agent or method.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two review authors independently assessed study eligibility, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of included studies.

MAIN RESULTS

We included four trials involving 388 women that were judged to be at an unclear to high risk of bias overall. A variety of different agents for providing analgesia were assessed in the trials, and a number of different methods to measure pain relief were used, and thus results could not be combined in meta-analysis. Three trials compared diazepam with an alternative agent (ketamine; vinydan-ether; "other" anaesthesic agent) for the provision of general anaesthesia, and one trial compared spinal analgesia to pudendal nerve block (in both groups lignocaine was administered).With regard to the primary outcomes, women receiving diazepam for forceps delivery in one small trial were more likely to judge their pain relief as effective compared with women receiving vinydan-ether (risk ratio (RR) 1.13; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02 to 1.25; 101 women). In a further small trial, no significant difference was seen in the number of women judging their pain relief as effective when diazepam was compared with ketamine (RR 1.42; 95% CI 0.98 to 2.07; 26 women). In the trial that compared spinal analgesia to pudendal nerve block, women receiving spinal analgesia were significantly more likely to regard their analgesia as adequate (RR 3.36; 95% CI 2.46 to 4.60; 183 women) and were less likely to report severe pain during forceps delivery (RR 0.02; 95% CI 0.00 to 0.27; 183 women). No trials reported on the review's other two primary outcomes of serious maternal adverse effects or complications, and neonatal mortality or serious morbidity.In terms of secondary outcomes, women receiving diazepam compared with vinydan-ether, were significantly less likely to experience vomiting (RR 0.04; 95% CI 0.00 to 0.62; 101 women). No significant differences were seen for the few neonatal outcomes that were reported across any of the comparisons (including Agpar score of less than seven at five minutes and acidosis as defined by cord blood arterial pH less than 7.2).

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

There is insufficient evidence to support any particular analgesic agent or method as most effective in providing pain relief for forceps delivery. Neonatal outcomes have largely not been evaluated.

Non-opioid drugs for pain management in labour

BACKGROUND

Labour is a normal physiological process, but is usually associated with pain and discomfort. Numerous methods are used to relieve labour pain. These include pharmacological (e.g. epidural, opioids, inhaled analgesia) and non-pharmacological (e.g. hypnosis, acupuncture) methods of pain management. Non-opioid drugs are a pharmacological method used to control mild to moderate pain.

OBJECTIVES

To summarise the evidence regarding the effects and safety of the use of non-opioid drugs to relieve pain in labour.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group's Trials Register (15 February 2012).

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) using non-opioid drugs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs); paracetamol; antispasmodics; sedatives and antihistamines) in comparison with placebo or standard care; different forms of non-opioid drugs (e.g. sedatives versus antihistamines); or different interventions (e.g. non-opioids versus opioids) for women in labour. Quasi-RCTs and trials using a cross-over design were not included. Cluster-randomised RCTs were eligible for inclusion but none were identified for inclusion.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two review authors independently assessed for inclusion all studies identified by the search strategy, carried out data extraction and assessed risk of bias. We resolved any disagreement through discussion with a third author. Data were checked for accuracy.

MAIN RESULTS

Nineteen studies randomising a total of 2863 women were included in this review. There were three main comparison groups: 15 studies compared non-opioid drugs with placebo or no treatment (2133 women); three studies compared non-opioid drugs with opioids (563 women); and three studies compared one type of non-opioid drug with a different type or dose of non-opioid drug (590 women). Some of the studies included three or more groups and so have been put in more than one comparison. Overall, there was little difference between groups for most of the comparisons. Any differences observed for outcomes were mainly limited to one or two studies. Non-opioid drugs (sedatives) were found to offer better pain relief (mean difference (MD) -22.00; 95% confidence interval (CI) -35.86 to -8.14, one trial, 50 women), better satisfaction with pain relief (sedatives and antihistamines) (risk ratio (RR) 1.59; 95% CI 1.15 to 2.21, two trials, 204 women; RR 1.80; 95% CI 1.16 to 2.79, one trial, 223 women) and better satisfaction with the childbirth experience (RR 2.16; 95% CI 1.34 to 3.47, one trial, 40 women) when compared with placebo or no treatment. However, women having non-opioid drugs (NSAIDs or antihistamines) were less likely to be satisfied with pain relief compared with women having opioids (RR 0.50; 95% CI 0.27 to 0.94, one trial, 76 women; RR 0.73; 95% CI 0.54 to 0.98, one trial, 223 women). Women receiving the antihistamine hydroxyzine were more likely to express satisfaction with pain relief compared with the antihistamine promethazine (RR 1.21; 95% CI 1.02 to 1.43, one trial, 289 women). Women receiving sedatives were more likely to express satisfaction with pain relief compared with antihistamines (RR 1.52; 95% CI 1.06 to 2.17, one study, 157 women). The majority of studies were conducted over 30 years ago. The studies were at unclear risk of bias for most of the quality domains.Opioids appear to be superior to non-opioids in satisfaction with pain relief, while non-opioids appear to be superior to placebo for pain relief and satisfaction with the childbirth experience. There were little data and no evidence of a significant difference for any of the comparisons of non-opioids for safety outcomes. 

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

Overall, the findings of this review demonstrated insufficient evidence to support a role for non-opioid drugs on their own to manage pain during labour.