The Effects of the Use of Virgin Mary Herb in Childbirth (EVMHUBDPFC)

September 2, 2026 updated by: Tuğba YILMAZ ESENCAN, Uskudar University

Effect of Virgin Mary Herb Used in Birth on Duration, Pain and Fear of Childbirth: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This is a study to see if the use of virgin mary herb during birth has an effect on fear, pain and duration during birth. Virgin mary herb is a dry plant and it is believed that when added to water during birth, it makes birth easier.

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.

Detailed Description

Objective: Midwives mostly develop nonpharmacological methods to cope with fear and pain management during birth in order not to interfere with the flow of birth. There are limited studies on traditional birth methods in Turkey. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of the use of the Virgin Mary Herb, one of the traditional methods applied during birth, on fear of birth and pain felt during birth. Material and Method: The universe of the study consists of all pregnant women who were admitted to the Birth Unit of a City Hospital in Istanbul between March 2023 and December 2023. A power analysis was conducted to determine the number of people to be included in the study sample. The power of the test was calculated with the G*Power 3.1 program. In order to exceed the 95% value in determining the power of the study; a total of 84 people, 42 people in groups, should be reached at a significance level of 5% and an effect size of 0.732 (df=82; t=1.66). The study aimed to reach a total of 100 people, with the condition of including 50 people in each group, considering the high power of the test and the losses. Data were collected between September 5, 2024 and December 31, 2024. 50 intervention groups and 50 control groups were included in the study, and all pregnant women received midwifery care. The intervention group was additionally shown the opening of the Virgin Mary Herb in water.

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.
100

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

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Umraniye
      • Istanbul, Umraniye, Turkey (Türkiye), 34768
        • Uskudar University Faculty of Health Sciences

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

  • Child

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Being over 18 years old,
  • Being able to understand and speak Turkish,
  • Being primiparous,
  • Not having a chronic disease,
  • Having completed the 37th week of pregnancy,
  • Not having passed the 42nd week of pregnancy,
  • Being in a cephalic presentation,
  • Having reached 4cm cervical dilatation,

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Multiparous pregnancy,
  • Application of labor induction,
  • Being a high-risk pregnancy,
  • Having received childbirth preparation training,
  • Being an immigrant,
  • Use of non-pharmacological methods other than Virgin Mary

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: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: 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.
Sham Comparator: primiparous pregnant
Control group: Normal midwifery care is applied during birth and no other care is applied. Pregnant women are not shown the blossoming of the Virgin Mary plant in water as in the intervention group.
Other: primiparous pregnant
Only midwifery care was applied to pregnant women in the control group.
Active Comparator: primiparous pregnant woman following virgin mary
Pregnant women in the intervention group were shown the herb Mary taken in water during birth and also received midwifery care.
Other: primiparous pregnant woman following virgin mary
It is thought that the application of the motherwort during birth shortens the duration of labor and reduces pain and fear during birth. In the study, the pregnant women in the intervention group watched the opening of the motherwort in water during birth.

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
Fear Scale
Time Frame: After the pregnant woman started labor(when cervical dilatation was 4cm and above), the application was started. Labor lasted on average 24 hours.During this time the pregnant woman was assessed 3 times
It is a scale developed by Serçekuş, İşbir and İnci in 2017. The Turkish form of the Fear of Childbirth Scale is a measurement tool that can accurately measure fear during childbirth, can be applied to Turkish culture, and is suitable in terms of language and content validity. The scale is a practical and fast tool to determine the degree of fear during childbirth and has been recommended to be used to determine the degree of fear of women in delivery rooms. Detection of fear during childbirth can allow continuous supportive care (emotional, informative support, relaxation, etc.) during childbirth, allowing the woman to have a better birth experience. Therefore, the Fear of Childbirth Scale can be used by professionals to determine the degree of fear of women in delivery rooms. The scale consists of 10 questions. Each question was scored between 1 and 10. The higher the score, the higher the fear.
After the pregnant woman started labor(when cervical dilatation was 4cm and above), the application was started. Labor lasted on average 24 hours.During this time the pregnant woman was assessed 3 times

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
Visual Analog Scale (VAS)
Time Frame: After the pregnant woman started labor(when cervical dilatation was 4cm and above), the application was started.Labor lasted on average 24 hours.During this time the pregnant woman was assessed 3times
VAS was developed to be used in converting some values that cannot be measured quantitatively into numerical values. In VAS, where pain intensity is evaluated, pain intensity is graded between 0 and 10 points. "No pain" is graded as 0 points and "very severe pain" is graded as 10 points. Pain intensity of "less than 3 points" is indicated as mild pain, "between 3-6 points" as moderate pain, and "more than 6 points" as severe pain. It is seen that the pain increases as the score given increases.
After the pregnant woman started labor(when cervical dilatation was 4cm and above), the application was started.Labor lasted on average 24 hours.During this time the pregnant woman was assessed 3times

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.
Uskudar University

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: Sumeyye ÇİFTÇİ, specialist midwife, Çam ve Sakura City Hospital
  • Study Director: Tugba YILMAZ ESENCAN, Associate Professor, Uskudar University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

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.
May 31, 2024

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.
December 31, 2024

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.
December 31, 2024

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 23, 2025

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.
February 7, 2025

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.
February 13, 2025

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.
September 3, 2026

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.
September 2, 2026

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.
February 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

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.
  • Virgin Mary Herb Used in Birth

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

The study will be published in Yöktez.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

The work started on May 1 and ended on December 31.

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

The study can be accessed by entering Yöktez and typing the name of the study or the names of the administrators.

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • SAP
  • ICF
  • ANALYTIC_CODE
  • CSR

Study Data/Documents

  1. Individual Participant Data Set
    Information identifier: Fear of Childbirth Scale
    Information comments: https://gcris.pau.edu.tr/bitstream/11499/6124/1/7ba3f584-23f9-4af0-9a4a-56f72570f94d.pdf
  2. Individual Participant Data Set
    Information identifier: Fear of Childbirth Scale

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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