Latest Cochrane Review Finds Effective CAM Therapies For Pain Relief During Labor
Many women do not want to use pain medications or analgesia during labor and delivery so they often turn to alternative therapies such as massage, acupuncture, and hypnosis. Though the use of these CAM (Complementary and Alternative Medicine) therapies is common, studies that measure their true efficacy are not.
A recent Cochrane Review looked at all studies that assessed the effectiveness of CAM therapies used to ease the pain of labor and delivery. Data from 14 studies was pooled for the analysis.
The two therapies found by the reviewers to show some efficacy were hypnosis and acupuncture.
Acupuncture was studies in 3 small trials and found to decrease the use of medication by as much as 30 percent. It also decreased the likelihood that women would need augmentation of labor with oxytocin or pitocin.
Hypnosis was studied in five of the 14 trials and involved more than 700 women. It was proven an effective means of pain management and lowered the use of epidurals. As with acupuncture augmentation was less common when women used hypnosis. Vaginal delivery was also achieved more often when women used hypnosis.
Other CAM therapies such as massage, aromatherapy, acupressure, and music therapy have been studied but the reviewers did not find efficacy based on study results. Women may still use these during labor and delivery with success.
As women are becoming more educated about birth and the possible side effects of using medication and the risks of intervention during labor and delivery the use of CAM therapies will become more common. Future studies may find benefit in all types of CAM therapies if more women are included in the studies. The reviewers sited one main cause for lack of efficacy may have been too few subjects.
Posted by Dr. Christina Gutierrez on November 2, 2006 01:33 PM
