What are the risks of spinal and epidural placement?
Your anesthesiologist will go over the pros and cons of the procedure before beginning. If there is any contraindication (such as fever, infections, or bleeding disorders), the epidural or spinal will not be placed. Complications are rare but do include: nausea, headaches, back pain, unsuccessful placement, bleeding, infections, and local anesthetic toxicity. More details will be provided during pre-assessment, but remember, that the more serious the problem, the more rare it is to happen. Again, spinals and epidurals are relatively safe and are performed thousands of times a day throughout the country for obstetric anesthesia, and we always do our best to take all precautions to avoid any side effects.
