Planning a baby - giving birth

Giving birth

Providing you and your baby are well, your epilepsy should not prevent you having a normal labour and delivery. However, it is recommended in the NICE guideline - The Epilepsies (October 2004) that the birth takes place in hospital.

During labour, it is important to take your anti-epileptic drugs at the same time that you usually would. You could ask your midwife or companion to help you to remember them.

Pain relief during labour

TENS machines are often used for pain relief during labour. These are perfectly suitable for women with epilepsy.

An anaesthetic which goes in the spine, called an epidural, is another suitable option for pain relief, as long as the anaesthetist is aware that you have epilepsy and knows which anti-epileptic drugs you are taking.

Pethidine is not recommended by some doctors, as it may trigger seizures in some people.

Gas and air is safe, so long as you do not over-breathe when you are using it. Over-breathing can trigger seizures in some people.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K is important for making our blood clot. A very small number of babies don’t have enough vitamin K in their body when they are born and this can cause them to bleed in different parts of their body, any time in the first few weeks of life. For example, they may have nose or mouth bleeds, or start to bleed from their umbilical stump or their bottom. They may also have bleeding in their brain. Bleeding in newborn babies can be very serious and can cause brain damage and even death.

When a newborn baby doesn’t have enough vitamin K, it is called vitamin K deficiency. This is a rare disease, but it can be prevented by giving the baby extra vitamin K shortly after birth, either by an injection or by mouth. If you take an enzyme-inducing drug (carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, phenobarbital, phenytoin, primidone or topiramate) when you are pregnant, your baby may be at a higher risk of having vitamin K deficiency. To prevent this, it is recommended that your baby should have an injection of one milligram of vitamin K at birth. Some doctors also recommend that you should take 10-20 mg of vitamin K, by mouth, every day in the last month of your pregnancy. Your midwife or obstetrician will be able to tell you more about this.

9 July 2008