More than 40% of people in Australia who access pain relief during labour use epidurals. That amounts to around 92,000 epidurals a year. They’re also used for pain relief outside obstetrics.
However, Australia is feeling the effects of a global supply shortage of particular brands of epidural kits. While this shortage was expected to be resolved at the end of last month, a spokesperson for the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) told The Conversation it would continue beyond July.
