Effects of Antenatal Exercises With Sacroiliac Joint Mobilization in Pregnancy Related Pelvic Girdle Pain

Pelvic girdle pain is defined as the pain experienced between the posterior iliac crest and the gluteal region, particularly in the sacro iliac joint.It is characterized by pain, instability, limitations in mobility and functioning of the pelvic region.This condition is found to be associated with difficulties in activities of daily life such as standing, walking, working and sleeping hence, affecting the quality of life.Pelvic girdle pain is on of the major preganacy-related problems that affects about 50% of the pregnant females.Previous studies have shown that about 33-50% of the women repost pelvic girdle pain before 20 weeks of gestation and the the prevalavce may reach 60-70% in late pregnancy.Different management strategies including antenatal exercises, sacro iliac joint belt, kinesiotaping, sacro iliac joint mobilization etc are used to treat pelvic girdle pain.Different studies have shown the positive results of antenatal exercises, sacro iliac joint belt and kinesiotaping but there is dearth of evidence to establish the efficacy of sacro iliac joint mobilization on pregnancy-related pelvic girdle pain.This study aims to fulfill this gap by comparing the effects of antenatal exercises with sacro iliac joint mobilization on pelvic pain, function and disability.

This randomized control trial will be conducted in Obs&Gynae Opd of Fauji Foundation Hospital using non-probability purposive sampling.Participants will be briefed regarding the study objectives, procedure, risks and benefits of treament, voluntary participation and right to withdraw.Written informed consent will be taken from all the participants before conducting the research.Details of exercise program will be explained to them.Screening will be done by using PAR Q.Dignostic tests will be applied to confirm the pelvic girdle pain.FABERs test and Posterior Pelvic Pain Provocation test will be used for this purpose.Then the selected participants will be randomized into 2 groups(experimental group and control group)via lottery method. Participants will complete Numeric Rating Pain Scale(NRPS) for pain, Pelvic Girdle Questionnaire for disability measurement and will perform Active Straight Leg raise test(ASLR) to measure pelvic function.All of these measurements will be taken at baseline, after 2 weeks and then after 4 weeks of intervention.

The treatment protocol of both groups is as follows:

Group 1(Control group):Postural education, hot pack, antenatal exercises(i.e deep breathing, stretching, kegel exercises, Mitchells physiologic relaxation technique and walk.

Group 2(Experimental group):Postural ecucation, hot pack, antenatal exercises(i.e deep breathing, stretching, kegel exercises, Mitchells physiologic relaxation technique and walk) and sacro iliac joint mobilization in side lying position(1 set of 30 oscillatios per session)