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Abstract:
Objective:
The main objective of this study was to examine the influence of osteopathic treatment on the length of childbirth in the case of first-time pregnancies. It also looked into how the intervention influenced the rate of childbirth complications and the newborn baby’s general condition.
Design:
Randomized, controlled, clinical trial
Setting:
The study was conducted by two osteopaths, who were trained at Sutherland College, in their surgeries in Landsberg and Schwäbisch Gmünd. The first-time pregnant women were recruited by midwives, gynaecologists and the media.
Patients:
78 first-time pregnant women participated in the study (their average age was 30). The randomisation process led to 40 participants being assigned to the intervention group and 38 to the control group. Treatment started between the 12th and the 16th week of pregnancy. During the course of the study seven participants dropped out of the control group and four out of the intervention group.
Intervention:
Three osteopathic treatments took place – one after the first, second and third trimester of the pregnancy. The pregnant women in the control group did not receive osteopathic treatment. The osteopathic dysfunctions in the cranial, visceral and parietal systems found on that particular day of treatment were diagnosed and treated individually.
Outcome Parameters:
The main parameter was the length of childbirth. The secondary parameters for the mothers were the mode of childbirth, the number and type of childbirth complications as well as the injuries during childbirth. The babies’ condition was documented by means of the Apgar-Schema and the umbilical artery ph value. All data was collected via perinatal statistics. The data regarding the state of mother and child was collected via questionnaires.
Results:
The length of childbirth was reduced by 3 hours from 7.7 hours in the control group to 4.7 hours in the intervention group. This meant an improvement by 61% (p=0.088, 95% CI=-0.5 to 6.5). The pain intensity during childbirth decreased by 37% and the number of episiotomies fell from 48% to 29.4% in the intervention group. The data regarding injuries and complications during childbirth was also more positive in the intervention group - these results were, however, not statistically significant. 100% of the babies in the intervention group had normal or slightly acidic umbilical artery ph values, compared to only 83% in the control group.
Conclusion:
Three osteopathic treatments during pregnancy had a relevant impact on the length of childbirth. The results were not entirely significant. Possible reasons could be the fact that there were some outliers in the control group and that the group of participants was not big enough. This outcome is encouraging for further research in this field especially in terms of prevention and whether complications during childbirth can be reduced through specific osteopathic treatment during pregnancy.
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