More and more women of childbearing age are sporting lumbar tattoos. Irrespective of your attitude to the practice, does this preclude her from having an epidural in labour?
Kuczkowski from California, where a fifth of the population have some “epidermal enhancement” believe a lumbar tattoo is not a contraindication to neuraxial analgesia (Arch Gynecol Obstet 2006;274:310-2). It is suggested that pigmented areas are best avoided and Touhy needles used routinely to circumvent possible tattoo puncture-related complications.
