More than two million women deliver vaginally every year in the United States (US). Along with the joy and happiness of having a new member in the family, women may suffer from cramping pain and lower abdomen discomfort following uterine involution; perineal pain due to perineal trauma or episiotomy; and nipple pain from breastfeeding or breast engorgement.~A stepwise approach using multimodal combination of medications can effectively provide an individualized pain management for women in their postpartum period. The first step includes non-opioid analgesics (as paracetamol and NSAIDs), step two adds milder opioids (as codeine, tramadol and oral morphine), and step three incorporates stronger opioids (as parenteral morphine).~In this study the investigators will investigate whether a scheduled administration of analgesics is superior to administration of analgesics based on patient request following a vaginal delivery.
Untreated postpartum pain has been associated with increased risk of opioid use, postpartum depression and development of persistent pain. In this study the investigators will investigate whether a scheduled administration of analgesics is superior to administration of analgesics based on patient request following a vaginal delivery.