Complications in obstetric anaesthesia

Abstract

‘Obstetric anaesthesia is a litigious area of medical practice – patient expectations are high, and many of the interventions undertaken by anaesthetists are performed urgently or emergently, frequently out of hours. The complications that occur during obstetric practice are not unique to this area of anaesthesia, but some of the physiological and anatomical changes that take place during pregnancy can affect the frequency with which these happen. In this narrative review, we hope to cover a few of the more common complications in obstetric anaesthesia, as well as some of the more severe, yet less frequently occurring problems.