What are the effects off anesthetics on pregnant women and fetuses?

What are the effects off anesthetics on pregnant women and fetuses?

Samuel Seelig (Anesthesiologist, Los Angeles, California) gives expert video advice on: What are the risks of an epidural?; Can I take additional pain medication while having spinal anesthesia or an epidural?; Does general anesthesia affect breastfeeding? and more...

The local anaesthetics do not have side-effects in the laboring mother if they're placed properly in the spinal canal and in the epidural space. Very little gets absorbed systemically and it should have no effect on the mother. If they're given improperly, and they do enter the circulatory system, they can cause some dizziness, some nausea, and in large concentrations can cause a seizure.