Many thousands of women receive epidural injections in Ohio each year to relieve pain during labor and to make the birthing process easier. Nationally, that figure rises exponentially, with an estimated 2.5 million women getting the injection during labor. It is an altogether common practice, with more than 60 percent of all deliveries involving an epidural.

Past research has cited a nexus between epidurals and some mothers developing fevers during labor, with a new study just released and working from prior findings stating that fevers are related in some instances to birth injuries. Those can range from cerebral palsy and fetal distress to lack of oxygen and birth trauma.

The study followed through on more than 3,000 women who received epidurals during labor. The conclusion: About 19 percent of mothers receiving the injection developed fevers of more than 100 degrees. For women forgoing an epidural, that figure was a mere 2.4 percent.

An attendant finding: The chance of a baby developing a serious problem following birth increased commensurate with how high the mother's temperature rose.

An inverse finding was also manifest, namely. that no difference in birth outcomes could be seen between women who did not receive an epidural and women who did not develop a fever following an injection.

Although the study has been cited for its usefulness, there is a call for further research to more closely examine other causes that might also be contributing to fever during labor. Intrauterine infections, for example, are linked with birth injuries, most commonly cerebral palsy.

Source: U.S. News & World Report, "Epidural plus fever in mom may raise risks for baby" Jenifer Goodwin, Feb. 3, 2012