Examination of the Effects of Pelvic Floor Muscle Exercises on Blood Flow in Pregnant Women

Summary

This research will be conducted on pregnant volunteers who have applied to the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Dokuz Eylul University Faculty of Medicine Hospital and undergone a comprehensive examination by an Obstetrician and Gynecologist. After these participants are informed about the content of the study, a signed informed consent form will be obtained. In the study, during mutual interviews with all participants, initial assessments will include a data recording form, digital palpation and the PERFECT system to evaluate pelvic floor muscle strength and endurance, and clitoral Doppler ultrasound to evaluate vulvovaginal blood flow. Routine pregnancy assessments will also include umbilical, uterine artery, and MCA Doppler ultrasound. Participants will be divided into two groups: exercise and control. Pregnant women in the exercise group will receive an individualized pelvic floor exercise program created by a physiotherapist (individual exercise sessions will be arranged based on data obtained from each participant's pelvic floor examination), with the first session conducted with the physiotherapist, and then they will be asked to continue this as a home program. Participants will be reassessed during their routine doctor check-ups throughout the pregnancy, and the exercise program will be updated by the physiotherapist. An exercise tracking chart will be created and given to the participants for the home program, and they will be asked to fill these out daily. Pregnant women in the control group will only receive education about the pelvic floor muscles, their functions, pelvic structure, and changes in these structures during pregnancy. Assessments will be repeated from the 2nd trimester until delivery during the participants' routine doctor check-ups. The differences between these two groups in the obtained data will be examined.

Conditions

• Pelvic Floor Muscle Training
• Pregnancy
• Blood Flow Indexes

Interventions

OTHER

Exercise

For each participant included in the exercise group, an individualized pelvic floor muscle exercise program will be created based on the results of digital palpation and the PERFECT assessment system. The first exercise session will be conducted with the physiotherapist, and the participant will be provided with a home-based program. During pregnancy check-ups, the pelvic floor muscles will be re-evaluated, and the exercise program will be updated according to the new evaluation results. To monitor the home-based program, participants will be given an exercise tracking chart that they will be asked to fill out daily

BEHAVIORAL

Control

Participants in the control group of our study will receive standard pregnancy care and check-ups. Within this scope, the general health status of the pregnant women will be evaluated during routine antenatal follow-up visits, check-ups appropriate to their gestational weeks will be performed, and necessary medical interventions will be carried out. Additionally, participants will receive detailed education about pelvic floor anatomy, the functions of the pelvic floor muscles, and the changes that occur in these muscles during pregnancy. Within the scope of general health education, information will be provided about nutrition, hygiene, exercise, and other lifestyle recommendations during pregnancy. The participants in the control group will not be given the specific pelvic floor muscle training program applied in the experimental arm of the study; they will only receive standard pregnancy care and general information

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Dokuz Eylul University

  collaborator OTHER

• Celal Bayar University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Özge Çeliker Tosun, professor · Dokuz Eylul University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

50 Years

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2024-12-27

Primary Completion

2025-04-27

Completion

2025-04-27

Countries

• Turkey (Türkiye)

Study Locations