Other methods use medicines to stop or reduce the pain messages before they reach the brain. These methods may be given by various means:
 as a gas breathed through a mouthpiece,
by injection,
through a tiny tube (catheter) which is fed into the lower back, and which carries local anaesthetic to provide a numb sensation.
A TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) machine may both block pain signals and stimulate the production of endorphins. A TENS machine delivers small amounts of electrical current through a pad placed on the womans back. The woman controls the strength of the electric current using a hand-held device, ensuring that it is safe. TENS machines can be used in hospital or can be hired out before the expected delivery date for use at home.
Where medicines are used to reduce pain during labour, there is no method that is 100% free of side effects for mother and baby. Some painkilling drugs, such as pethidine, pass through the placenta to the baby, who may be less responsive immediately after birth. These medicines may be avoided close to the time of delivery to ensure that their effects have worn off by the time the baby is born.
The experience of childbirth and the ability to cope with pain varies greatly. Its important to learn which options are available beforehand and discuss them with your birth partner and midwife.
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(www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk 25/09/2007)
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