A balance between pain relief, bodily awareness, and control: a qualitative study on women’s experiences with intravenous remifentanil patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) for labour analgesia
Authors' conclusion
Remifentanil was described as a controllable and acceptable form of labour analgesia that enabled women to balance pain relief with bodily awareness, and active participation during labour. Women positioned RemiPCA between nitrous oxide and epidural analgesia and often described it as a less invasive option that still provided meaningful pain relief.
Study context
- Population
- Women who had given birth using remifentanil PCA, North Zealand Hospital, Denmarkinterviewed median 6 days postpartum
- Participants
- 18 women
- Outcome
- Women's experiences of remifentanil during labour (pain relief, side effects, role alongside other analgesia options)
Methodological detailssingle-centre, semi-structured interviews, manifest content analysis
- Single-centre
- Semi-structured interviews
- Manifest content analysis
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Themes of women's experiences
- Three themes: balancing pain relief, bodily awareness and control during birth; practical experiences of remifentanil; reflections on labour analgesia options
- Remifentanil enabled a balance between pain relief and feeling connected to the body, fostering a sense of control
- Remifentanil positioned between nitrous oxide and epidural analgesia, often chosen to avoid epidural-related risks and side effects
- Most reported high satisfaction
- Initial midwife guidance needed to time doses, after which most women learned to time doses themselves
Safety
- Most reported few side effects
Original publication
A balance between pain relief, bodily awareness, and control: a qualitative study on women’s experiences with intravenous remifentanil patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) for labour analgesia. Int J Obstet Anesth. Published 2 July 2026. doi:10.
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