“Whidbey Island mothers-to-be may now opt for pain-relief during labor, without leaving Whidbey Island. Whidbey General Hospital this month began to offer intrathecal anesthesia to laboring mothers, a first-of-its-kind service at the hospital that serves Whidbey Island.Women would often opt to deliver their babies at hospitals off-island to get pain relief during labor, said Trish Rose, Whidbey General Hospital public information director in Coupeville.The intrathecal is somewhat similar to the epidural, during which an anesthesiologist inserts a needle into the layer adjacent to the epidural space near the spinal column, and an anesthetic drip is administered during labor. The tube supplying the drip must remain inserted into the woman’s back.Epidural … requires attendance by an anesthesiologist, said John Eggers, an obstetrician. Eggers is one of the four doctors who has signed up to administer the intrathecal anesthesia on an on-call basis, 24 hours a day, seven days per week. We don’t have a high enough volume here to afford a full-time anesthesiologist, Eggers said.Intrathecal follows the same premise as an epidural, that is an anesthetic is applied to the same space in the woman’s back. However, a prescribed dose is inserted at one time, and there is no need to have a drip tube.The usual prescribed duration of the anesthetic is three hours, Eggers said, and it is somewhat safer than an epidural. Additionally, women enjoy more mobility with an intrathecal than with an epidural. With no tube inserted and taped to their backs, women can sit up, move around, or even get up, with some help. The needle used for the intrathecal is much smaller than that used for an epidural, making the incidents of headaches much less, Eggers said. Side effects from intrathecal anesthesia may include itching and nausea.I prefer it to an epidural, Eggers said. He tries to give the intrathecal to his patients when they are dilated at about six centimeters, but it can be given later in labor because the onset of the anesthesia’s effect is rapid, only about five to 10 minutes. The medicine has no effect on the baby.Additionally, Eggers said, intrathecal anesthesia is more predictable than an epidural.Whidbey General Hospital’s family birthing center has been underused, Rose said, and hospital staffers hope the introduction of intrathecal anesthesia will encourage more families to have their babies at the hospital. “