If you wish to respond to a paper or other item already published in the BJA, please go to the abstract/full text version of that item and click on the link "E-Letters: Submit a response to the article".
Electronic Letters to:
|
|
E-letters: Electronic letters published:
-
![[Read E-letter]](/icons/misc/sectionDOWN.gif)
Oxytocin in repeated doses is effective clinically
- Niraj Sinha (16 July 2009)
|
|
|||
|
Niraj Sinha, specialist Anaesthesia
Send letter to journal:
|
Dear Editor I congratulate the authors of the article on this extensive study. I work in a hospital where we get to see around 12000 deliveries in a year with 25% caesarean section rate. And we are still dependent on repeated doses of oxytocin to a large extent. Obstetricians find oxytocin helpful clinically despite upcoming reports of desensitization of receptors and confirm that repeated boluses in caesarean section and labour ward do result in improved uterine tone and reduced bleeding. In many parts of the world like ours misoprostol is still not available easily. We often rely on ergometrine i.m. injection if oxytocin is unable to induce adequate contraction of the uterus. Ergometrine has unpleasant side effects like nausea and vomiting; it can’t be given to patients with pregnancy induced hypertension. In these patients we do use repeated boluses of oxytocin. While we do get complaints of nausea, vomiting, chest pain and flushed feeling, it does result in arrest of bleeding. Therefore this study gives us relative reassurance that subsequent doses of oxytocin will not have same haemodynamic effects of hypotension and tachycardia. Conflict of Interest:None declared |
|||