• Mitko Kocarev, Fouzia Khalid, Fatima Khatoon, and Roshan Fernando.
• Department of Obstetric Anesthesia, Womens Hospital, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
• Curr Opin Anaesthesiol. 2018 Jun 1; 31 (3): 251-257.

Purpose Of ReviewNeuraxial labor analgesia remains the most effective and one of the most commonly utilized methods for pain relief during labor. This narrative review article is a summary of the literature published in 2017 on neuraxial analgesia for labor.Recent FindingsFrom a total of 41 identified articles, 13 were included in the review. The topics have been structured into three categories: initiation of neuraxial analgesia, maintenance of neuraxial analgesia, and neuraxial analgesia and obstetric outcomes. Maintenance regimens, such as program intermittent epidural bolus (PIEB) techniques, remain a focus of extensive research with the potential to optimize analgesia for each individual patient. In a similar way, the dural puncture epidural technique could improve the quality of labor analgesia with fewer side effects compared with standard epidural and combined spinal epidural (CSE) techniques. Finally, the increased use of modern technology using portable ultrasound devices with automated imaging software to facilitate epidural catheter placement may offer potential advantages to the obstetric anesthesiologist, especially when dealing with technically difficult cases.SummaryRecent advances, as well as refinements, of current neuraxial analgesia techniques could improve women's experience of labor.

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