School of Nursing and Midwifery, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2023 Jun 1;23(1):405. doi: 10.1186/s12884-023-05689-0.
Labor pain is complex, paradoxical and varied in every parturient woman. Management of labor pain has been a crucial component in maternity care. Heat therapy is one of the proposed method for labor pain relief. Infrared is one of the methods of heat therapy but there is any study in this regard. This study aimed to compare the effect of the infrared belt and hot water bag on the severity of pain in the first stage of labor among primiparous women.
In this clinical trial in the first stage of labor, 20-min cycles of heat therapy were conducted at the dilations of 4-5 and 6-7 cm in the intervention group 1 by an infrared belt and in the intervention group 2 by hot water bag, respectively. The control group received routine care. The severity of the pain was measured by the short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire.
In total, 136 women consented to participate in this clinical trial study. The mean score of pain intensity was significantly lower in the two intervention groups compared to the control group (P < 0.001). The mean pain intensity was significantly lower in the infrared belt group than in the hot water bag group (P < 0.001).
Based on these findings, heat therapy with an infrared belt reduced the severity of pain in the first stage of labor. The infrared belt could be used and recommended as a safe and effective pain relief in childbirth and maternity care.
This study was registered in the Iran Clinical Trial Center with the code of IRCT20190805044446N1 .
分娩疼痛在每位产妇身上都是复杂、矛盾且多样的。分娩疼痛的管理一直是产科学中的一个重要组成部分。热疗是缓解分娩疼痛的一种方法。红外线是热疗的一种方法，但目前尚未对此进行研究。本研究旨在比较红外腰带和热水袋对初产妇第一产程疼痛严重程度的影响。
在这项第一产程的临床试验中，干预组 1 在宫口扩张 4-5cm 和 6-7cm 时，分别使用红外腰带和干预组 2 使用热水袋进行 20 分钟的热疗周期，对照组接受常规护理。疼痛严重程度采用简短的 McGill 疼痛问卷进行测量。
共有 136 名妇女同意参加这项临床试验研究。与对照组相比，两组干预组的疼痛强度平均评分显著降低（P<0.001）。红外腰带组的平均疼痛强度明显低于热水袋组（P<0.001）。
基于这些发现，使用红外腰带进行热疗可降低第一产程的疼痛严重程度。红外腰带可用于并推荐作为分娩和产科学中的一种安全有效的止痛方法。
本研究在伊朗临床试验中心注册，注册号为 IRCT20190805044446N1。
