Table 6. Usual care to treat lumbopelvic pain during pregnancy per country according to literature and personal communication with experts.
a Kurdija K, Gynecologist, University Hospital Centre Zagreb, Croatia (Personal communication, 2024).
b Negahban H, Professor of Physiotherapy, School of Paramedical and Rehabilitation Sciences, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran (Personal communication, 2023).
LBP: low back pain; LPP: Lumbopelvic pain
| Country | Authors | Usual care as described by the authors |
| Scandinavian countries | ||
| Denmark | Backhausen 2017 [10] | Standard prenatal care in Denmark consists of three visits to the general practitioner, five visits to a midwife, and two ultrasound scans. Healthy pregnant women are advised to exercise at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity per day. |
| Norway | Malmqvist 2012 [38] | 19%-52% of patients were treated. 20.6% of all pregnant women exercised >2-3 times a week. |
| Gutke 2018 [39] | 53% of patients received treatment. 90% of them were satisfied. | |
| Sweden | Gutke 2018 [39] | 34% of patients received treatment. 84% of them were satisfied. |
| Mogren 2005 [40] | 32.7% of patients received some treatment. Women with high pain levels: 51.2%. | |
| Non-Scandinavian Countries | ||
| Brasilia | Martins 2005 [24] | Two of 36 patients were referred to a physiotherapist. |
| Figueira 2014 [13] | None of the 20 patients were treated with exercises. | |
| Croatia | Kurdijaa 2024 | Below 1% of patients get advice to consult a physiotherapist (expert opinion). |
| France | Ibanez 2017 [41] | 3 of 137 women were treated with physiotherapy. |
| Barbier 2023 [11] | The usual management focuses on prescribing analgesic medication and sometimes advising physiotherapy, osteopathy, or swimming. | |
| Iran | Ansari 2010 [42] | 41% of patients consulted a physician; 8.5% of all patients were treated. |
| Negahbanb 2023 | Therapists in Iran ‘are usually overprotective with these patients and prefer to use more conventional and safe treatment methods in order to prevent unwanted consequences’ (expert opinion). | |
| Republic of South Africa | Hawker 2021 [43] | 1 out of 14 women with severe LPP sought help. |
| Turkey | Sencan 2018 [44] | 4.2% of patients received treatment. |
| Ozdemir 2015 [29] | None of the 48 patients were referred to a physiotherapist. | |
| Ozdemir 2015 [29] | Usual care is comprised of movement without straining herself in daily life, forcing herself to rest, taking paracetamol pills, and consulting a physical therapy clinic for LPP if necessary. | |
| Sonmezer 2021 [34] | Regular prenatal care consisting of routine medical and nursing care, and given education consisting of ergonomic information about activities that exacerbate LBP during daily living and optimal lifting techniques, sitting, standing and sleeping postures. | |
| USA | Gutke 2018 [39] | 24% of patients received treatment. 71% of them were satisfied. |