Acupuncture and Stabilizing Exercises for Pregnant Women with Pelvic Girdle Pain

Background

• About 33% of women will experience severe back pain during their pregnancy.
  
• Previous low back pain and strenuous work during pregnancy are found to increase a woman’s risk of pelvic pain during pregnancy.
• 10% of women will still experience pain after delivery, which can delay return to work and affect how they care for their newborn.
• Women in this study were between 12 – 31 gestation weeks.
  

Results

• Acupuncture and specific stabilizing exercises added significant benefit compared to standard treatment, which consisting of patient education, pelvic belts and a basic home exercise program in pregnant women with pelvic pain.
• After one course of treatment the women were re-examined and found to have decreased pain and physical symptoms. This was most notably found in the acupuncture group.
• The greatest reduction of pain measured on a visual analogue scale was for patients who received acupuncture.
• Women receiving only standard treatment did not have any increases or decreases in pain symptoms.
• No serious complications occurred during any treatment session.
  

Conclusion

• The addition of both acupuncture and specific stabilization exercises was found to be more effective then standard treatment (patient education, basic home exercises and a pelvic belt) for pregnant women with pelvic pain.