Managing back pain in pregnancy using a support garment: a randomised trial

Area of Science:

• Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Pain Management
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• Low back pain affects approximately 50% of pregnant women.
• Pregnancy-related low back pain significantly impacts quality of life and physical function.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of the BellyBra compared to tubigrip in managing pregnancy-related low back pain.
• To assess changes in pain severity, physical activity, and life satisfaction after a 3-week intervention.

Main Methods:

• Randomized controlled trial conducted at a tertiary referral hospital in Australia.
• 115 pregnant women (20-36 weeks gestation) with lumbar or posterior pelvic pain were randomized to BellyBra or tubigrip.
• Primary outcomes included pain severity and physical activity; secondary outcome was life satisfaction.

Main Results:

• Both BellyBra and tubigrip groups showed a reduction in pain severity (VAS scores).
• The BellyBra group reported significantly greater improvements in pain impact on sleeping, sitting up, and walking.
• A significant reduction in analgesic use was observed in the BellyBra group.

Conclusions:

• Both BellyBra and tubigrip effectively reduce pregnancy-related low back pain.
• BellyBra demonstrated superior effectiveness in alleviating pain's impact on daily physical activities compared to tubigrip.