Trial reportBMJ (Clinical research ed.)2002
Randomised study of long term outcome after epidural versus non-epidural analgesia during labour.
Trial report in BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2002. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 19 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 98 citations in OpenAlex.
- Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent postoperative pain in adults and children.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2018Pooled it
- Epidural versus non-epidural or no analgesia for pain management in labour.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2018Pooled it
- Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia versus conventional analgesia for preventing persistent postoperative pain in adults and children.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2018Pooled it
- Local anaesthetics and regional anaesthesia for preventing chronic pain after surgery.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2012Pooled it
- Pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain (PPP), I: Terminology, clinical presentation, and prevalence.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2004Pooled it
- Perceptions of Low Back Pain and the Role of Physiotherapy in Bangladesh: A Qualitative Study.Musculoskeletal care · 2025Article
- Assessment of the Association Between Neuraxial Anesthesia and Back Pain After Delivery: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Anesthesiology research and practice · 2025Article
- Knowledge and Attitudes towards Epidural Analgesia among Women of Childbearing Age in Jazan, Saudi Arabia: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study to Identify Predictors through Multivariate Modeling.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Neuraxial techniques of labour analgesia.Indian journal of anaesthesia · 2018Review
- Article
- A retrospective study on persistent pain after childbirth in the Netherlands.Journal of pain research · 2016Article
- Epidural analgesia during labor vs no analgesia: A comparative study.Saudi journal of anaesthesia · 2012Article
- Non-Obstetric Pain in Pregnancy.Reviews in pain · 2008Article
- Is there a relationship between parity, pregnancy, back pain and incontinence?International urogynecology journal and pelvic floor dysfunction · 2008Article
- Does caesarean section negatively influence the post-partum prognosis of low back pain and pelvic pain during pregnancy?European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2007Article
- Review
- [Epidural analgesia during childbirth].Der Anaesthesist · 2003Review
- Epidurals and backache: again?BMJ (Clinical research ed.) · 2002Article
- Spinal Epidural Abscess Post Spinal Anesthesia: An Uncommon Complication of a Common Procedure.Asian journal of neurosurgeryArticle
Corrections and comments
- Commented on by
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo determine whether epidural analgesia during labour is associated with long term backache.
designFollow up after randomised controlled trial. Analysis by intention to treat.
settingDepartment of obstetrics and gynaecology at one NHS trust.
participants369 women: 184 randomised to epidural group (treatment as allocated received by 123) and 185 randomised to non-epidural group (treatment as allocated received by 133). In the follow up study 151 women were from the epidural group and 155 from the non-epidural group.
main outcome measuresSelf reported low back pain, disability, and limitation of movement assessed through one to one interviews with physiotherapist, questionnaire on back pain and disability, physical measurements of spinal mobility.
resultsThere were no significant differences between groups in demographic details or other key characteristics. The mean time interval from delivery to interview was 26 months. There were no significant differences in the onset or duration of low back pain, with nearly a third of women in each group reporting pain in the week before interview. There were no differences in self reported measures of disability in activities of daily living and no significant differences in measurements of spinal mobility.
conclusionsAfter childbirth there are no differences in the incidence of long term low back pain, disability, or movement restriction between women who receive epidural pain relief and women who receive other forms of pain relief.
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Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.