A Survey of Characteristics and Management of Low Back Pain in Postpartum Women

산모의 요통 실태와 관리에 대한 조사 연구

Many pregnant women have experienced low back pain (LBP) during pregnancy and after delivery, and it has been an important component in women health. This study was designed to investigate the characteristics and management of the LBP in postpartum women. Eighty-five postpartum women were participated in this survey. Mean age of 85 women was 28.1 years. Of 85 postpartum women, 55.3% (n=47) had LBP after pregnancy. Thirty of 47 women had pain on lumbar region, 17 postpartum women had pain on sacroilium region. Of 85 postpartum women, 74% (n=54) had LBP before pregnancy and 71.8% (n=61) had LBP during pregnancy. Of 47 postpartum women who had LBP, 83% (n=39) had not received medical management for LBP, 12.8% (n=6) took medication, and 4.3% (n=2) performed self-exercise. None of postpartum women had received physical therapy during pregnancy and after delivery for treatment low back pain. The pain in SI region was more severe than in lumbar region after pregnancy according to VAS (visual analog scale) (p<.05). However, there was no significant difference in VAS scores between SI pain and lumbar pain before and during pregnancy (p>.05). Pain region after delivery was related to pain region of pre-pregnancy and during pregnancy (p<.01). Pain level after delivery was related to the pain and night pain level during pregnancy (p<.01).