Neuraxial anesthesia is the preferred analgesia for labor and delivery due to minimal maternal and fetal sedation.
The following is mentioned under the obstetrics tag but may be applied to general epidural anaesthesia
for sensory block (up to the T4 level for cesarean delivery). Lower extremity weakness is expected because L2-L5 nerve roots innervate the legs. L5 sympathetic fibers decrease lower extremity vascular tone
Provides pain relief throughout labor by allowing for continuous infusion of low-concentration local anesthetic (eg, bupivacaine) and an opioid (eg, fentanyl) via catheter insertion below the L4 vertebrae (below spinal cord termination) into the epidural space (between the ligamentum flavum and dura).
for a targeted block of pain fibers associated with labor and delivery.
This placement allows for a targeted block of pain fibers (T10-L1 during the first stage, S2-S4 fibers during the second stage) of labor, which corresponds with fetal descent into the pelvis.