Acupuncture, exercise ease pregnancy pains

Women who experience pelvic and back pain during pregnancy have a variety of treatments to choose from. However, the effects of acupuncture, pregnancy-specific exercise and physiotherapy are small, and it remains unclear whether these approaches will prevent pain before it develops. Over two-thirds of women experience some degree of back pain during pregnancy, and nearly a fifth suffer from pelvic pain. This pain generally increases as pregnancy advances and it interferes with daily activities (like carrying, cleaning, sitting and walking), can prevent women going to work and sometimes disturbs sleep. Suggestions to help manage the pain are varied and include special pregnancy exercises, frequent rest, hot and cold compresses, a supportive belt, massage, acupuncture, chiropractic, aromatherapy, relaxation, herbs, yoga and Reiki. Sometimes drugs like acetaminophen have also been suggested. Canadian researchers from the Institute for Work and Health in Toronto found no articles that specifically addressed preventing back or pelvic pain in pregnancy, but they did look at eight studies involving a total of 1,305 women that compared the effects of various pregnancy-specific exercises, physiotherapy programs, acupuncture and using special pillows added to usual prenatal care. These were compared to usual pregnancy care or other treatments. It was found that strengthening exercises, sitting pelvic tilts, and water exercises eased the intensity of lower back pain, and also cut down on the amount of sick leave women took due to pain, compared to regular prenatal care only. Stabilising exercises and acupuncture were better than usual care alone for relieving pelvic pain. Among women with both back and pelvic pain, there was evidence that acupuncture was more effective than physical therapy. The results of the review need to be interpreted with caution since the quality of the studies was not the best. The researchers concluded by calling for more research on the effectiveness of various approaches to treating back and pelvic pain in pregnancy in order to help prenatal care providers give women better advice on treating, and possibly preventing, discomfort.