Linda,
Presenting living history, again. You wrote < the doctor gave him 25 mg
Demerol plus 12.5
mg phernergan via IV. For the next 6-7 hours he (my husband, not the
doctor)
was completely out of it - when he was "awake," he was unfocused and
semi-coherent; mostly he slept. . . .Seeing what this did to my husband
has strengthened my (already-strong)
resolve to keep talking and preaching and warning about what labor
medications do to babies. No wonder this drug causes so many problems in
neonates! Yikes!>
I don't have the pharmaceutical expertise to explain or even understand
fully just how phenergan POTENTIATES Demerol. Perhaps Dr. Hale can help
explain it. But don't blame it all on demerol.
I remember that when such drugs as the phenothiazines came on the market,
there was a dramatic reduction in the dosages of demerol give to OB
patients.
Before that, in the decade of the baby boom in which I worked labor and
delivery and took time out to have four of my children (1950's), my
memory tells me that in our hospital, at least 98% of the mothers
(3600/yr) were getting 100-yes you read that right- ONE HUNDRED
MILLIGRAMS of Demerol, plus at least one dose of Scopolamine.
This was at about 5 cm. cervical dilatation. Many patients were given
repeated doses of Scopolamine. Some got repeat doses of demerol during
long 48+ hour labors. And then general anesthetics on top of it. Very few
sections except in dire, dire emergencies.
(The other 2% either came in ready to deliver and precipitated before any
medicines could be given, or there were a very, very few doctors giving
caudal anesthetics, or just beginning to do spinals or begrudgingly
"allow" some of us to "try to do" natural childbirth.)
For kidney stones, it's a wonderful relief (Been there. Had them. No-o-o-
fun, and never hope to have another) One obstetrician of yesteryear who
has now gone to his reward (?) (just kidding, of course. He put his heart
into what he thought was best) used to say that "the pain of a kidney
stone was right next to the pain of childbirth!"
I know all of you working so hard out there sometimes get mighty, mighty
discouraged. But look at it this way. Things could be worse! At least we
know a lot more about "breastfeeding rehab" now than we did then!
Jean
*********************
K. Jean Cotterman RNC, IBCLC
Dayton, Ohio USA
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