Does it hurt to take oxytocin?

Nowadays, there are several ways for women to give birth. One is the most desired natural birth; the other is cesarean section; and the choice between these two methods depends on the actual situation of the mother. If the conditions for natural birth are met but the baby cannot be born, an oxytocin injection can be used to help, but does it hurt to give birth to the baby? Those who have had this experience know that oxytocin is quite painful, and of course it also depends on the mother’s sensitivity to pain.

Does oxytocin hurt?

Some people believe that oxytocin-induced contractions are more painful than natural labor pains. Of course, you can’t compare these two different birth experiences. But most doctors agree that oxytocin-induced contractions are very similar to real labor — that is, they start out weak and then get stronger.

Overall, the strength of the two is comparable. So why do women often report that this method increases their pain? If a woman is having only weak contractions, surely oxytocin will make them stronger—after all, that’s the purpose of using oxytocin.

In addition, the mother's mood may be different during the induction process; it may be that she is tethered to the monitor and cannot move around, so she feels more uncomfortable; perhaps the entire delivery process is completed in the hospital, so it seems to take longer; or each contraction further deepens the mother's impression of this intense pain.

Oxytocin has the effect of stimulating uterine smooth muscle and causing uterine contraction. Clinical practice has proved that if used appropriately by mothers during childbirth, it can play a good role in inducing labor or strengthening uterine contractions, commonly known as the "labor induction" effect. Therefore, in modern clinical obstetrics, oxytocin is widely used and is deeply loved by mothers. However, the principles and methods of dosage should be strictly followed. If fetal distress occurs during delivery, oxytocin should not be used to induce labor. Otherwise, it will affect the health of the fetus.

Under what circumstances should oxytocin be administered?

(1) Antenatal induction of labor: Oxytocin can be used when the expectant mother has any situation that requires termination of pregnancy, such as miscarriage, fetal malformation, fetal growth retardation, post-term pregnancy, the possibility of hemolysis, placental dysfunction, etc. Before delivery, the full-time doctor will decide the timing of induction of labor based on the fetal movement, fetal heart rate monitoring, and the amount of amniotic fluid in the B-ultrasound. If the depth of amniotic fluid is less than 3cm and the fetal movement is less than three times per hour, hospitalization for induction of labor will be arranged, and oxytocin will be used during the induction of labor.

(2) Induction of labor: If the expectant mother experiences uterine contractions, amniotic fluid discharge, repeated delays, and the fetus fails to descend during labor, oxytocin can be injected. In addition, oxytocin is also needed in cases of weak uterine contractions and uncoordinated uterine contractions. The dosage of oxytocin should also be used strictly according to the drug instructions to achieve an ideal delivery;

(3) Postpartum lactation: When a woman is lactating, the mammary glands can continuously secrete a large amount of milk under the action of oxytocin and store it in the mammary gland alveoli. At this time, oxytocin causes the myoepithelial cells surrounding the mammary alveoli to contract, prompting the mammary glands to release milk;

(4) Hemostasis: Oxytocin has the same hemostatic function as a bandage, and the principle is very similar, mainly through external force compressing the damaged blood vessels to achieve the purpose of hemostasis. After the injection of oxytocin, the myometrium of the uterus slowly contracts under the action of the drug, and the contraction force will close the open blood vessels in the uterine cavity to prevent blood from flowing out.