Labour epidural analgesia and anaesthesia in Switzerland 1999

Question. This survey investigated the common practice of obstetric analgesia and anaesthesia in Swiss hospitals and evaluated the influence of the Swiss interest group for obstetric anaesthesia. Methods. In March 1999 we submitted 145 questionnaires to all Swiss hospitals providing an obstetric service. Results. The rate of epidural analgesia (EA) was higher in large hospitals (>1,000 births/year) than in small services. EA was maintained by continuous infusion techniques in 53% of the responding hospitals. For elective caesarean section,spinal anaesthesia (SA) and EA were performed in 77% and 16% of the patients, respectively. General anaesthesia (5%) was only used in small hospitals (<500 births/year). Emergency caesarean section was performed under SA in 75% of all hospitals and only in 25% was a general anaesthesia used. An already existing EA for labour analgesia was continued for anaesthesia for caesarean section in 63% of Swiss hospitals. Conclusions. Regional anaesthesia was most commonly used for obstetric anaesthesia in Swiss hospitals. Epidemiological studies, recommendations of the Swiss interest group for obstetric anaesthesia,as well as the expectations of pregnant women, increased the numbers of regional anaesthesia compared with the first survey in 1992.