Effects of Relaxing Hydrotherapy in Third Trimester of Pregnancy

Summary

This study will be the first scientific approach to investigate physical and psychological effects of the passive hydrotherapy-method WATSU (WaterShiatsu) on women and their unborn children at the third trimester of pregnancy. Potential therapeutic benefits of the method shall be evaluated.

It is being hypothesized that WATSU is related to measurable changes in everyday stress perception, psychological wellbeing, quality of life, pregnancy-related low back pain, tonus of the uterus, amount of amniotic fluid, spontaneous course of breech presentations, prospects of external cephalic versions.

Participants in the intervention-group will be treated twice with WATSU (60 minutes per treatment, standardized sequence) in the \>36th week of pregnancy. There will not be any sham-intervention in the control-group. Both groups will be examined by ultrasound (prior and after the treatments plus on day 8 of the trial) and answer questionnaires (prior and after the treatments plus once a week until birth).

Conditions

• Pregnancy
• Breech Presentation
• Low Back Pain
• Stress, Psychological

Interventions

PROCEDURE

WATSU

WATSU (WaterShiatsu) is a gentle form of hydrotherapy that was established in the 1980s. The standardized 60min-intervention applied in this trial is called WATSU-Transition-Flow (Dull, 1997) and is adapted for the third trimester. The mother's abdomen is not being touched during the treatment. The treatment takes place in a one-to-one hands-on-setting in the warm- water-therapy-pool (35°C, 95°F) of the University Hospital in Bern and consists of acupressure massage according to the Japanese massage-technique Shiatsu, in an attempt to harmonize the mother's "energy-flow" in the so called "meridians" (energy-channels) of Traditional Chinese Medicine. These "meridians" are also sought to be influenced by slow passive stretches of the mother's extremities. In addition, mobilization of her spine is being enhanced by gravity-free movements. During the study, each participant in the intervention group will be treated twice with WATSU (60min treatment at day 1 and 4).

Sponsors & Collaborators

• BFH Berner Fachhochschule für Gesundheit

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• University of Bern

  collaborator OTHER

• Insel Gruppe AG, University Hospital Bern

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Daniel Surbek, Prof. Dr. med. · Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Bern

• Luigi Raio, PD Dr. med. · Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Bern

• Agnes M Schitter, MSc PT · BFH Bern University of Applied Sciences

Study Design

Allocation

NON_RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2012-07-31

Primary Completion

2014-05-31

Completion

2014-05-31

Countries

• Switzerland

Study Locations