A treatise on the science and practice of midwifery . d with labor. The medical attendant should thereforeinsist on as much quiet as possible, and should allow no one in the roomexcept the nurse and some one friend whose presence the patient maydesire. The husbands presence must be left to the wishes of the women like their husbands to be with them, while others prefer tobe without them, and the medical attendant is bound to act in accord-ance Avith the patients desire. Vaginal Examination.—If pains be actually present, a vaginal exam-ination is essential, and should not be delaye
A treatise on the science and practice of midwifery . d with labor. The medical attendant should thereforeinsist on as much quiet as possible, and should allow no one in the roomexcept the nurse and some one friend whose presence the patient maydesire. The husbands presence must be left to the wishes of the women like their husbands to be with them, while others prefer tobe without them, and the medical attendant is bound to act in accord-ance Avith the patients desire. Vaginal Examination.—If pains be actually present, a vaginal exam-ination is essential, and should not be delayed. It enables us to ascertainwhether the labor has commenced or not, and whether the presentationis natural or otherwise. The pains, although apparently severe, may bealtogether spurious, and labor may not have actually commenced. Itis of much importance, for both our own credit and comfort, that weshould be able to diagnose the true character of the pains; for if theybe so-called false pains, we might wait hours in fruitless expectation Fig. Examination during the First Stage. of progress, while delivery is still far off. The necessity of ascertaining,therefore, the actual state of affairs need not further be insisted on. Character of False Pains.—False pains are chiefly characterized bytheir irregularity, sometimes coming on at short intervals, sometimeswith many hours between them ; they also vary much in intensity, somebeing very sharp and painful, while others are slight and transient. Inthese respects they differ from the true pains of the first stage, which are MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL LABOR. 283 at first slight and short, and gradually recur with increased force andregularity. The situation of the two kinds of pains also varies, the falsepains being chiefly situated in front, while the true pains are felt most inthe back and gradually shoot round toward the abdomen. Nothingshort of a vaginal examination will enable us to clear up the diagnosissatisfactorily. If t
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectobstetrics, bookyear1
