Laser Acupuncture Therapy in Postpartum Low Back Pain

January 19, 2020 updated by: Chang Gung Memorial Hospital

Laser Acupuncture Therapy in Postpartum Low Back Pain: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Study

Over half of women after giving birth have low back pain (LBP), however, LBP is often accepted as a normal part of postpartum. Unsolved low back pain undoubtedly affects women's physical health and may be negatively affect their psychological health. This study was aimed to investigate the efficacy of laser acupuncture therapy (LAT) in postpartum LBP. Postpartum women with LBP admitted at a postpartum care center were recruited and randomly assigned to the intervention group or the control group. The participants in the intervention group underwent 10 sessions/2 weeks of LAT and received standard obstetric care. The participants in the control group only received standard obstetric care. Primary outcome measurements were Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain and salivary cortisol values. Secondary outcome measurements were Chinese versions of the Roland and Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) version 2.1and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS).

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
106

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Taiwan
      • Kaohsiung, Taiwan, 833
        • Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

20 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Age not less than 20 years
  2. Women postpartum within one month
  3. Low back pain with visual analogue scale (VAS) score ≧1
  4. Low back pain was not relieved by rest for 30 minutes.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. with systemic diseases
  2. with cancers
  3. with psychiatric diseases
  4. under treatment for severe pain by a physician.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: LA group
The participants in LAT group underwent 10 sessions of LAT over 2 weeks, using a gallium aluminum arsenide Laser Pen. The participants in the LAT group received 0.375 J of energy at each of the following acupoints bilaterally: BL23 (Shenshu, B2), BL25 (Dachangshu, B2), BL26 (Guanyuanshu, B2), BL40 (Weizhong, B2) and SP6 (Sanyinjiao, B2).
Procedure: Laser acupuncture treatment
Laser acupuncture therapy (LAT) is a noninvasive technique that involves stimulation of traditional acupoints with low intensity, non thermal laser irradiation.
No Intervention: Control group
The participants of the control group received standard obstetric care.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain
Time Frame: 2 weeks
record VAS score for pain before intervention and 2 weeks after intervention
2 weeks
Change in salivary cortisol values
Time Frame: 2 weeks
record Salivary cortisol values before intervention and 2 weeks after intervention
2 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ)
Time Frame: 2 weeks
The RMDQ is a self-administered disability measure in which greater levels of disability are reflected by higher numbers on a 24-point scale.
2 weeks
Chinese version of Oswestry Disability Index (ODI)
Time Frame: 2 weeks
The ODI includes 1 item on pain and 9 items on physical activity of daily living (personal care, lifting, walking, sitting, standing, sleeping, sex life, social life, and traveling). The total scores ranged from 0 to 40, higher scores indicated greater limitation of physical activities.
2 weeks
Perceived stress (PSS)
Time Frame: 2 weeks
PSS containes 7 items with positive subscales and 7 items with negative subscales. Each item is rated from 0 to 4 (0 = never, 4 = very often).
2 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Chang Gung Memorial Hospital

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Chun-Ting Liu, Department of Chinese Medicine, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
November 1, 2017

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
July 31, 2018

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
July 31, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
January 14, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 19, 2020

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
January 23, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 23, 2020

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 19, 2020

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
January 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • CMRPG8G0941

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

No

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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