Postpartum Women
Conditions
Keywords
postpartum, inter-rectus distance, diastasis recti, Lumbar disability, urinary incontinence, pelvic floor, quality of life
Brief summary
The aim of this study is to compare the effect of a hypopressive abdominal exercise program versus a general strengthening exercise program on inter-recti distance, abdominal and lumbar muscle thickness, lumbopelvic and abdominal pain and function, pelvic floor dysfunction, and quality of life in postpartum women. To evaluate the effects of the interventions, the subjects will be assessed at pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention and at 3-months follow-up.
Detailed description
The aim of this study is to compare the effect of a hypopressive abdominal exercise program versus a general strengthening exercise program on inter-recti distance, abdominal and lumbar muscle thickness, lumbopelvic and abdominal pain and function, pelvic floor dysfunction, and quality of life in postpartum women. To evaluate the effects of the hypopressive exercise, the subjects will be assessed at pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention and at 3-months follow-up. It will consist of a randomized controlled trial study. The sample will consist of women in the early postpartum period (6-8 weeks after delivery). Subjects will be randomly allocated to two different exercise programs: hypopressive abdominal exercise program and general strengthening exercise program. Both interventions will have a total duration of 6 weeks (18 sessions), 3 times a week, 30 minutes each session. To evaluate the effects of the interventions, the subjects will be assessed at pre-intervention (6th-8th week postpartum), immediately post-intervention (12th-14th week postpartum) and at 3-months follow-up (24th-26th week postpartum). Inter-recti distance, abdominal and lumbar muscle thickness, lumbopelvic and abdominal pain and function, pelvic floor dysfunction, and quality of life will be measured.
Interventions
OTHERhypopressive abdominal exercise
Participants will perform an hypopressive abdominal exercise program consisting of 18 sessions (6 weeks), 3 times a week, 30 minutes each session.
Participants will perform a general strengthening exercise program consisting of 18 sessions (6 weeks), 3 times a week, 30 minutes each session.
Sponsors
University of Valencia
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)
Masking description
Participants don't know to which intervention group they belong to
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
FEMALE
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* women aged between 18-45 years old * in the 6th-8th week postpartum * both vaginal or caesarean delivery * both primiparous or multiparous women
Exclusion criteria
* previous abdominal or pelvic surgery * reasons to suspect metabolic, neurological or neuromuscular disease * multiple birth delivery
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Inter-recti distance | pre-intervention | Inter-recti distance will be measured by ultrasonography at rest, during abdominal draw-in and abdominal curl-up, at 2 locations on the linea alba (2 cm above and below the umbilicus). |
| Abdominal and lumbar muscles thickness | pre-intervention | Transversus abdominis, obliquus internus, obliquus externus and multifidus thickness at rest and during draw-in will be measured by ultrasonography. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Lumbopelvic and abdominal muscles function | pre-intervention | Lumbopelvic and abdominal muscles function will be tested with the supine bridge test, the prone bridge test and the lateral bridge test. |
| Lumbar disability | pre-intervention | Lumbar disability will be evaluated by the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) |
| Sexual dysfunction | pre-intervention | Sexual dysfunction will be assessed using the 6-item Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI-6) (5-30). |
| Self-reported quality of life | pre-intervention | Self-reported quality of life will be evaluated with the Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36). In this scale, higher scores indicate higher quality of life. |
| Severity of the urinary incontinence | pre-intervention | The severity of the urinary incontinence will be assessed using the Incontinence Questionnaire-Urinary Incontinence Short Form (ICIQ-IU-SF) (0-21). |
| Lumbopelvic and abdominal pain | pre-intervention | Lumbopelvic and abdominal pain reported by the patient will be measured using a 100-mm visual analogue scale (VAS, 0-100, 0=minimum score, 100=maximum score). Lower values represent a better outcome (less pain). |
Countries
Spain
Outcome results
None listed