Diese Seite wurde automatisch übersetzt und die Genauigkeit der Übersetzung wird nicht garantiert. Bitte wende dich an die englische Version für einen Quelltext.

POSH-Ex: Physiotherapist-Led Telerehabilitation Exercise Programme for Postpartum Sexual Health (POSH-Ex)

30. Juli 2026 aktualisiert von: University Medical Centre Ljubljana

POSH-Ex: Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating a Standardized Physiotherapist-Led Telerehabilitation Programme for Postpartum Sexual Health

Postpartum women frequently experience impairments in sexual function, pelvic floor dysfunction, fatigue, and depressive symptoms, all of which may adversely affect their quality of life during the postpartum period. Although pelvic floor muscle training is recommended as part of postpartum rehabilitation, evidence regarding comprehensive physiotherapist-led exercise programmes specifically targeting postpartum sexual health remains limited. Furthermore, no standardized telerehabilitation programme has yet been evaluated using a randomized controlled trial design.

The aim of this randomized controlled trial is to evaluate the effectiveness of the POSH-Ex (Postpartum Sexual Health Exercise) programme, a standardized 12-week physiotherapist-led telerehabilitation intervention designed to improve female sexual function and overall postpartum health after childbirth. Secondary objectives are to evaluate its effects on pelvic floor muscle strength, physical activity, fatigue, depressive symptoms, health-related quality of life, and body composition.

A total of 84 postpartum women will be randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to either the intervention group or the control group. Participants in the intervention group will complete supervised online exercise sessions twice weekly for 12 weeks, while participants in the control group will receive usual postpartum care. Outcome assessments will be performed at baseline and immediately after completion of the intervention.

The primary outcome is female sexual function assessed using the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). Secondary outcomes include pelvic floor muscle strength, physical activity, fatigue, depressive symptoms, health-related quality of life, and body composition. The findings are expected to provide high-quality evidence regarding the effectiveness of a standardized telerehabilitation programme for postpartum rehabilitation and may contribute to the development of evidence-based postpartum rehabilitation programmes and future clinical practice guidelines.

Studienübersicht

Status

Noch keine Rekrutierung

Bedingungen

Intervention / Behandlung

Detaillierte Beschreibung

Postpartum sexual health is an important yet frequently neglected component of maternal health. During the postpartum period, women undergo substantial physiological, musculoskeletal, hormonal, and psychosocial changes that may negatively affect sexual function, pelvic floor function, physical activity, psychological well-being, and overall quality of life. Female sexual dysfunction following childbirth is common and is influenced by multiple interrelated factors, including pelvic floor muscle impairment, perineal trauma, fatigue, depressive symptoms, breastfeeding, and reduced physical activity. Despite its high prevalence, postpartum sexual health remains insufficiently addressed within routine postpartum care.

Pelvic floor muscle training is widely recommended for postpartum rehabilitation and has demonstrated beneficial effects on pelvic floor function and urinary continence. However, existing exercise interventions have primarily focused on isolated pelvic floor muscle exercises or single treatment components, while comprehensive physiotherapist-led exercise programmes specifically targeting postpartum sexual health remain scarce. Furthermore, the increasing availability of digital health technologies has highlighted the potential of telerehabilitation to improve accessibility and continuity of postpartum physiotherapy services. To the best of our knowledge, no standardized physiotherapist-led telerehabilitation programme specifically developed to improve postpartum sexual health has previously been evaluated in a randomized controlled trial.

The present study will evaluate the effectiveness of the POSH-Ex (Postpartum Sexual Health Exercise) programme, a standardized physiotherapist-led telerehabilitation intervention developed to improve female sexual function and overall postpartum health. The programme integrates pelvic floor muscle training with breathing control, deep core muscle activation, functional strengthening exercises, balance training, mobility exercises, and progressive whole-body exercise performed under physiotherapist supervision using an online platform. The intervention has been designed to provide a structured, progressive, and clinically applicable rehabilitation programme suitable for postpartum women.

This study is designed as a parallel-group randomized controlled trial. A total of 84 postpartum women meeting the predefined eligibility criteria will be randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to either the intervention group or the control group. Participants allocated to the intervention group will participate in the 12-week POSH-Ex programme consisting of two supervised online exercise sessions per week (60 minutes per session), while participants allocated to the control group will receive usual postpartum care without the structured exercise programme. Participant recruitment will continue until the planned sample size has been achieved and, if necessary, the intervention will be delivered in consecutive cohorts while maintaining identical eligibility criteria, randomization procedures, intervention protocol, supervision procedures, outcome assessment schedule, and data collection methods for all participants.

The primary objective is to determine whether participation in the POSH-Ex programme improves female sexual function compared with usual postpartum care. Female sexual function will be assessed using the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). Secondary objectives are to evaluate the effects of the intervention on pelvic floor muscle strength, physical activity, fatigue, depressive symptoms, health-related quality of life, and body composition. Outcome assessments will be performed at baseline before randomization and immediately following completion of the 12-week intervention.

The study has been designed in accordance with current methodological recommendations for randomized controlled trials. Randomization procedures, participant safety monitoring, adverse event reporting, data management, and statistical analyses have been prospectively defined within the study protocol to ensure methodological rigor, transparency, and reproducibility.

The findings of this trial are expected to provide high-quality evidence regarding the effectiveness of a standardized physiotherapist-led telerehabilitation programme for postpartum rehabilitation. If effective, the POSH-Ex programme may contribute to improving evidence-based physiotherapy practice, facilitate wider implementation of telerehabilitation in postpartum care, and support the development of future clinical guidelines for postpartum rehabilitation and women's health.

Studientyp

Interventionell

Einschreibung (Geschätzt)

84

Phase

  • Unzutreffend

Kontakte und Standorte

Dieser Abschnitt enthält die Kontaktdaten derjenigen, die die Studie durchführen, und Informationen darüber, wo diese Studie durchgeführt wird.

Studienkontakt

  • Name: Nikolina Zaplatić Degač
  • Telefonnummer: +385989362968
  • E-Mail: nzaplatic@unin.hr

Studienorte

      • Varaždin, Kroatien, 42000
        • Health Centers of Croatia
        • Kontakt:
        • Kontakt:
        • Hauptermittler:
          • Nikolina Zaplatić Degač

Teilnahmekriterien

Forscher suchen nach Personen, die einer bestimmten Beschreibung entsprechen, die als Auswahlkriterien bezeichnet werden. Einige Beispiele für diese Kriterien sind der allgemeine Gesundheitszustand einer Person oder frühere Behandlungen.

Zulassungskriterien

Studienberechtigtes Alter

  • Erwachsene

Akzeptiert gesunde Freiwillige

Nein

Beschreibung

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Women aged 18 to 45 years.
  • Between 10 and 12 weeks postpartum at the time of enrolment.
  • Singleton live birth.
  • Ability to understand and communicate in the Croatian language.
  • Ability to participate safely in moderate-intensity exercise.
  • Access to a computer, tablet, or smartphone with a stable internet connection for participation in online exercise sessions.
  • Willingness to comply with the study protocol and attend supervised exercise sessions.
  • Provision of written informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • • Medical contraindications to exercise according to current clinical recommendations.

    • Pregnancy during the study period.
    • Severe musculoskeletal, neurological, cardiovascular, or other medical conditions preventing safe participation in exercise.
    • Current participation in another structured postpartum rehabilitation or exercise programme.
    • Severe psychiatric disorder requiring immediate specialist treatment.
    • Positive response to Item 10 of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale indicating current thoughts of self-harm. Such participants will be referred for appropriate clinical assessment before potential study participation.
    • Inability to complete study questionnaires or follow study procedures.

Studienplan

Dieser Abschnitt enthält Einzelheiten zum Studienplan, einschließlich des Studiendesigns und der Messung der Studieninhalte.

Wie ist die Studie aufgebaut?

Designdetails

  • Hauptzweck: Unterstützende Pflege
  • Zuteilung: Zufällig
  • Interventionsmodell: Parallele Zuordnung
  • Maskierung: Single

Waffen und Interventionen

Teilnehmergruppe / Arm
Intervention / Behandlung
Experimental: POSH-Ex (Postpartum Sexual Health Exercise)
Participants allocated to the intervention group will receive the POSH-Ex (Postpartum Sexual Health Exercise) programme, a standardized physiotherapist-led telerehabilitation intervention delivered over 12 weeks. The programme consists of two supervised online exercise sessions per week (approximately 60 minutes per session) conducted according to a predefined standardized protocol. Participants will additionally receive weekly written exercise materials supporting independent practice between supervised sessions.
POSH-Ex is a standardized physiotherapist-led telerehabilitation programme designed to improve female sexual function and overall postpartum health. The intervention integrates pelvic floor muscle training, breathing control, deep core activation, functional strengthening, balance training, mobility exercises, and progressive whole-body exercises delivered through live online sessions.
Kein Eingriff: Control Arm POSH-Ex
Participants allocated to the control group will receive usual postpartum care routinely available within the Croatian healthcare system. They will not receive the structured POSH-Ex exercise programme during the study period. Outcome assessments will be performed according to the same schedule as in the intervention group.

Was misst die Studie?

Primäre Ergebnismessungen

Ergebnis Maßnahme
Maßnahmenbeschreibung
Zeitfenster
Change in female sexual function
Zeitfenster: Baseline and after the 12-weeks
Female sexual function will be assessed using the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI), a validated 19-item self-administered questionnaire evaluating six domains of sexual function: desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. Total scores range from 2 to 36, with higher scores indicating better sexual function. The primary outcome will be the change in the total FSFI score from baseline to the end of the 12-week intervention.
Baseline and after the 12-weeks

Sekundäre Ergebnismessungen

Ergebnis Maßnahme
Maßnahmenbeschreibung
Zeitfenster
Change in physical activity
Zeitfenster: Baseline and after the 12-weeks
Physical activity will be assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF). Total physical activity and activity by intensity level will be calculated according to the official IPAQ scoring protocol and expressed as MET-minutes per week. The secondary outcome will be the change in physical activity from baseline to the end of the intervention.
Baseline and after the 12-weeks
Change in fatigue
Zeitfenster: Baseline and after the 12-weeks
Fatigue will be assessed using the Fatigue Assessment Scale (FAS), a validated 10-item questionnaire measuring physical and mental fatigue. Total scores range from 10 to 50, with higher scores indicating greater fatigue. The secondary outcome will be the change in fatigue scores from baseline to the end of the intervention.
Baseline and after the 12-weeks
Change in depressive symptoms
Zeitfenster: Baseline and after the 12-weeks
Depressive symptoms will be assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), a validated 10-item questionnaire designed to screen for postpartum depressive symptoms. Higher scores indicate greater severity of depressive symptoms. The secondary outcome will be the change in EPDS scores from baseline to the end of the intervention.
Baseline and after the 12-weeks

Mitarbeiter und Ermittler

Hier finden Sie Personen und Organisationen, die an dieser Studie beteiligt sind.

Sponsor

Studienaufzeichnungsdaten

Diese Daten verfolgen den Fortschritt der Übermittlung von Studienaufzeichnungen und zusammenfassenden Ergebnissen an ClinicalTrials.gov. Studienaufzeichnungen und gemeldete Ergebnisse werden von der National Library of Medicine (NLM) überprüft, um sicherzustellen, dass sie bestimmten Qualitätskontrollstandards entsprechen, bevor sie auf der öffentlichen Website veröffentlicht werden.

Haupttermine studieren

Studienbeginn (Geschätzt)

1. September 2026

Primärer Abschluss (Geschätzt)

31. August 2027

Studienabschluss (Geschätzt)

30. September 2027

Studienanmeldedaten

Zuerst eingereicht

30. Juli 2026

Zuerst eingereicht, das die QC-Kriterien erfüllt hat

30. Juli 2026

Zuerst gepostet (Tatsächlich)

5. August 2026

Studienaufzeichnungsaktualisierungen

Letztes Update gepostet (Tatsächlich)

5. August 2026

Letztes eingereichtes Update, das die QC-Kriterien erfüllt

30. Juli 2026

Zuletzt verifiziert

1. Juli 2026

Mehr Informationen

Begriffe im Zusammenhang mit dieser Studie

Andere Studien-ID-Nummern

  • POSH-EX-2026-01

Plan für individuelle Teilnehmerdaten (IPD)

Planen Sie, individuelle Teilnehmerdaten (IPD) zu teilen?

UNENTSCHIEDEN

Arzneimittel- und Geräteinformationen, Studienunterlagen

Studiert ein von der US-amerikanischen FDA reguliertes Arzneimittelprodukt

Nein

Studiert ein von der US-amerikanischen FDA reguliertes Geräteprodukt

Nein

Diese Informationen wurden ohne Änderungen direkt von der Website clinicaltrials.gov abgerufen. Wenn Sie Ihre Studiendaten ändern, entfernen oder aktualisieren möchten, wenden Sie sich bitte an register@clinicaltrials.gov. Sobald eine Änderung auf clinicaltrials.gov implementiert wird, wird diese automatisch auch auf unserer Website aktualisiert .