Effects of exercise on back pain in pregnancy

描述(申请人提供)：背部疼痛是孕妇常见的健康问题。背痛可能会产生严重的不良后果，包括降低生活质量，降低在工作和家庭中正常工作的能力。鉴于许多妇女更喜欢避免在怀孕期间服用药物，考虑使用非药物方法来最大限度地减少背部疼痛和提高生活质量是有用的。中等强度耐力运动训练为减轻孕妇背部疼痛提供了一种看似有效的方法。这个项目的广泛目标是加深我们对中等强度耐力运动训练对孕妇健康影响的理解。中等强度的有氧运动已被发现对孕妇安全健康，但对中等强度抗阻运动对健康的影响知之甚少。因此，这项拟议研究的具体目的是检验以下假设：(1)在怀孕中期和晚期，每周进行两次腿部、背部、腹部和卡车肌肉的16周中等强度抗阻运动训练将显著减轻背部疼痛；(2)抗阻运动训练计划将显著减轻妊娠导致的背部功能丧失；以及(3)抗阻运动训练计划将显著提高与疼痛相关的生活质量。为了实现这些目标，180名背部疼痛的健康孕妇将被招募在她们怀孕中期的前两个月开始参与。参与者将随机接受为期16周的监督每周两次的中等强度抵抗力锻炼计划、与怀孕有关的教育计划(即安慰剂条件)或等待名单控制条件。背部疼痛、背部功能和与疼痛相关的生活质量的有效测量将被用来测试随机对照试验的结果。迫切需要更多地了解孕妇进行阻力运动训练对健康的影响，部分原因是越来越多的妇女在怀孕期间进行阻力运动。不幸的是，目前护士、医生和其他卫生专业人员缺乏关于孕妇进行中等强度耐力运动训练的健康结果的科学信息。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Back pain is a common health problem among pregnant women. Back pain can have important adverse consequences including a reduced quality of life and a reduced ability to function well both at work and at home. Given that many women prefer to avoid taking medications during pregnancy it is useful to consider non-pharmacological approaches to minimizing back pain and improving quality of life. Moderate intensity resistance exercise training offers a plausibly effective method for attenuating back pain among pregnant women. The broad objective of this project is to further our understanding of the health consequences of moderate intensity resistance exercise training for pregnant women. Moderate intensity aerobic exercise has been found to be safe and healthful for pregnant women, but little is known about the health effects of moderate intensity resistance exercise. Accordingly, the specific aims of the proposed research are to test the hypotheses that: (1) 16 weeks of moderate intensity resistance exercise training of the legs, back, abdominal and truck musculature performed twice weekly during the second and third trimesters will significantly attenuate back pain; (2) the resistance exercise training program will significantly attenuate pregnancy-induced loss of back function; and (3) the resistance exercise training program will significantly improve pain-related quality of life. To accomplish these goals 180 healthy pregnant women with back pain will be recruited to begin participating during the first two months of their second trimester. The participants will be randomized to perform sixteen weeks of either a supervised twice weekly, moderate intensity resistance exercise program, a pregnancy-related education program (i.e., placebo condition), or a waiting list control condition. Valid measures of back pain, back function and pain-related quality of life will be used to test the outcome of the randomized controlled trial. There is an urgent need to learn more about the health consequences of resistance exercise training among pregnant women in part because women increasingly are performing resistance exercise during their pregnancy. Unfortunately, at the present time there is a lack of scientific information available to nurses, physicians and other health professionals concerning the health outcomes associated with moderate intensity resistance exercise training among pregnant women.