Breathing Exercises Guided by Student Midwives During Labor (BREATH)

February 1, 2026 updated by: Antalya Bilim University

The Effect of Breathing Exercises Applied Under the Guidance of Student Midwives During Birth on Labor Pain, Labor Duration and Birth Satisfaction: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the effect of breathing exercises applied under the guidance of student midwives during labor on labor pain, labor duration, and birth satisfaction. The intervention group received structured breathing exercises guided by student midwives throughout labor, while the control group received routine intrapartum care. Outcomes were assessed during labor and in the early postpartum period

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This study is designed to evaluate the effect of a midwifery-led intervention on labor pain intensity and birth satisfaction among women giving birth vaginally. The study will be conducted as a controlled clinical study in a maternity hospital setting. Eligible pregnant women who are admitted to the labor ward and meet the inclusion criteria will be invited to participate and will provide informed consent prior to enrollment.

The study aims to determine whether the midwifery-led intervention is associated with reduced labor pain intensity and improved birth satisfaction compared to routine care.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

90

Phase

  • 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

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Women aged 18 years and older

Term pregnancy (≥37 weeks of gestation)

Singleton pregnancy

Planning vaginal birth

In the active phase of labor

Able to communicate and provide informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • High-risk pregnancy (e.g., preeclampsia, placenta previa, severe medical complications)

Multiple pregnancy

Planned cesarean section

Use of pharmacological pain relief at admission (e.g., epidural analgesia)

Known fetal anomalies

Inability to participate in breathing exercises

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: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Breathing Exercises Guided by Student Midwives
Participants in this group will receive structured breathing exercises in addition to routine intrapartum care. The breathing exercises will be guided by trained student midwives from admission to the labor ward until birth. The intervention will include slow-paced breathing, patterned breathing during contractions, and relaxation-focused breathing between contractions, with continuous guidance and encouragement provided according to a standardized protocol.
Behavioral: Guided Breathing Exercises During Labor
Structured breathing exercises delivered and monitored by student midwives during labor.
Active Comparator: Routine Intrapartum Care
Participants in this group will receive routine intrapartum care according to the standard clinical protocols of the maternity hospital. Routine care includes regular maternal and fetal monitoring, clinical assessment by midwives and obstetric staff, support during labor as per standard practice, and medical or obstetric interventions if clinically indicated. No structured breathing exercise program will be provided.
Other: Routine Intrapartum Care
Standard intrapartum care provided according to hospital protocols.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Labor pain intensity measured by the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) (0-10)
Time Frame: At admission to the labor ward (baseline) and at cervical dilatation of 6-7 cm.
Labor pain intensity will be assessed using a 10-cm Visual Analog Scale (VAS), where 0 indicates "no pain" and 10 indicates "worst pain imaginable." The outcome will be the VAS score reported by the participant at each assessment time point.
At admission to the labor ward (baseline) and at cervical dilatation of 6-7 cm.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Birth satisfaction measured by the Birth Satisfaction Scale Revised (BSS-R)
Time Frame: Within the first 24 hours postpartum
Birth satisfaction will be assessed using the Birth Satisfaction Scale-Revised (BSS-R), a 10-item scale with total scores ranging from 0 to 40, where higher scores indicate greater birth satisfaction.
Within the first 24 hours postpartum

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Antalya Bilim University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Seda Serhatlioglu, Doctorate, Antalya Bilim Üniversitesi

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)

September 1, 2024

Primary Completion (Actual)

March 3, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

March 15, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 2, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 12, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

January 21, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

February 4, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 1, 2026

Last Verified

January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2026-SS
  • 1919B012324751 (Other Grant/Funding Number: TUBITAK 2209-A Undergraduate Research Support Program)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data (IPD) will not be shared.

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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