Abstracts
Effects of acupuncture and specific stabilizing exercises among women with pregnancy-related pelvic pain: A randomised single blind controlled trial

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2004.10.151Get rights and content

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Objective

At present, there is no cure for pelvic girdle pain (PGP) during pregnancy. The aim was to evaluate short and long-term efficacy of acupuncture and specific stabilizing exercises as adjunct to standard treatment compared to standard treatment alone on pain, days of sick leave and disability.

Study design

In all, 386 pregnant women entered the trial after physical examination by an independent observer to confirm isolated PGP. The women were randomly assigned to standard treatment plus acupuncture (ACU), standard treatment plus specific stabilizing exercise (SSE) or to a control group (C). The main outcome measures were pain and days of sick leave. Analysis were performed by intention to treat.

Results

The ACU group had less pain (VAS scores) than controls in the morning (P = .0003) and in the evening (P = .0003). The differences remained during follow-up and were even more pronounced 3 months after treatment. The ACU group had lower rates in VAS compared to the SSE group (P = .0114). The SSE group, in turn, had lower rates in VAS than controls in the morning (P = .0186) and in the evening (P = .0432). We found no differences regarding sick leave at any time. No adverse effects of the treatments were

Conclusion

Acupuncture as well as specific stabilizing exercises constitutes efficient complements to standard treatment to reduce pain and discomfort and improve the ability to perform daily activities among pregnant women with isolated PGP. Acupuncture alleviates PGP more effectively than specific stabilizing exercise or standard treatment.

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