Historical aspects of pain relief during normal parturition
Thiery, M.
Verhandelingen - Koninklijke Academie Voor Geneeskunde van Belgie 51(5) 445-483; Discussion: 483-484
1989
ISSN/ISBN: 0302-6469 PMID: 2694671 Document Number: 340113
Traditional methods used for the relief of pain during normal delivery are few and the medical literature remained silent on this topic up to the middle of the 19th century. Indeed, the first effective method was etherization, and it was introduced by Simpson (Edinburgh) in 1847. Obstetric inhalation analgesia was followed by many other methods the development of which was based on new discoveries in chemistry, pharmacology, physiology, and psychosomatic medicine. This paper reviews the milestones in the historical development of obstetric analgesia.