- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
Birth Stories
Vaginal birth after back surgery?
Any new moms out there give birth after having back surgery? I had a lumbar laminectomy and i'm worried about the potential strain on my back. Doc says she wants to wait until closer to my due date to decide whether or not i should have a section. Ideally i'd like to avoid the cs, but i'd liek to know if anyone else out there had a similar situation.
Thanks!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Vaginal birth after back surgery?
Hey DDKlar, I"m a fellow 2nd tri. This is my first but I was actually wondering this same question.
I had back surgery to correct my scoliosis about 4 years ago and I'm worried about giving birth vaginally as well. I have two 12" titanium rods screwed to my spine but the doctor who did my surgery thought that I could have a normal vaginal birth and even get an epidural. I guess I'll have to wait and see. GL to you.
Hey guys,
Like korndog99, I had a spinal fusion to correct scoliosis - it was 15 years ago, when I was 15 years old. However, it sounds like mine was perhaps more of the spine, since I will not be able to have the epidural (I can't arch my back at all). I have been meeting with lots of specialists, etc, so that I can be fully informed and here is what I have come up with:
It does sound like a vaginal birth will be the best option for me. Since I can bend over and tie my shoe sitting in a chair, the doctors feel that is all the bending I will need to be able to do in order to deliver vaginally. Since I can't have the epidural, and I am concerned about the pain management, they have told me that I can have what I believe is called a "PCP pump" (Korndog, you may have had this following your back surgery - it is patient controlled (although limited) narcotics - in my case it was morphene). I am told that it is not as strong as the epidural, but will take the edge off of the pain a bit. Unlike the epidural, the narcotics will reach the baby and make the baby a bit sleepy, but they do have antidotes to the narcotics that they can give the baby when it is about to be born or just after birth (not sure exactly when, actually). As my doctor said yesterday - who knows? Maybe I will have a perfect day and not need meds at all!
They told me that I should avoid being induced since induction can make the contractions more severe and since I can't have the epidural, the best hope is for reaching labor naturally.
If it comes down to a c-section in an emergency, they expect that a spinal will be much easier to give me than an epidural, but they won't know if they will be able to get the spinal into my spine until they try. In the worst case, if they can't get the spinal in, they will have to take the baby out by general anesthesia (but we are all hoping that will be unlikely!).
During my vaginal delivery, there will be 4 professionals there - my doctor who will help with the delivery and his nurse, a pediatrician to monitor the baby and the pediatric nurse. The pediatrician is necessary since we will be using narcotics and the baby needs to be monitored a little bit more than normally would.
Hope that helps and best wishes to you! I am getting kind of nervous about the process but just hoping that the baby and I will make it through the process healthy and without complication!
Thank you so much for your response lbap. My OB still doesn't know for sure if I can have the epi so it still may not happen. My back doctor just said that I "should" be able to because my surgery was done middle to upper back.
I guess we'll see. I'd love to hear how your delivery goes though!
I had back surgery on L3, L4 and L5 in 1999 (laminectomy and discectomy) and so far I am planning on having a vaginal delivery unless complications arise closer to my due date or when I am actually in labor.
I may not be a candidate for the Epi because of the location of the surgery and the amount of scar tissue. So to be sure we are meeting with the head of Anastesia (sp?) to get his opinion. At this point if I can not have an epi I am going to try and go all natural. I am not impressed with the other drugs available and a spinal isn't sounding all that fun to me. I will do my best and then wait and see.
My doctor has never said that I will have to deliver by c-section even though I still have a decent size rupture at l4. So i think it should be ok.
For all of you first-time moms with back issues, I will say as someone with a weak back who has suffered from back pain for 12 years, labor was nothing like I expected. I would not have done much differently (normal labor, no meds,) but a couple things. First, I would suggest that if time and funds permit you seek out the treatment of a reputable prolotherapist. It's a treatment that can strengthen and actually repair damaged ligaments. Second, I do recommend hypno-birthing. With my hypnobirthing, however, we focused on "imagining" the pain away from my abdominal area, which I guess is where normal people feel contractions. I never had one contraction in my stomach - it was 110% in my back, and she was positioned perfectly normally - no standard back labor or anything. Labor seems to attack the weakest part of you - same goes if you have hip trouble. So I wish with my hypnobirthing I would have imagined the pain away from my back instead.
https://www.getprolo.com/
Prolotherapy was the answer to the worst pain I've ever experienced. I just think it's a good idea to strengthen your back before you deliver. It's safe for the baby, but I would say the earlier the better, simply because the healing process takes time, and if it's too close to your due date, it won't be really effective.