Chiropractors have long been treating ladies during pregnancy for pelvic and low back pain and often continue to treat both mother and baby post-partum. I’ve been swotting up on treatment aimed at pregnant ladies and babies and I recently spent a weekend in Pocklington attending a seminar given by chiropractor Elizabeth Davidson. Elizabeth has many years of experience working with pregnant mothers and is extremely knowledgeable regarding the biomechanical changes that affect women during pregnancy.
Pelvic girdle pain
Pelvic girdle pain (PGP) is the most commonly encountered problem in females during pregnancy and covers both the sacroiliac joints and/or the pubic symphysis. You may have heard it called symphysis pubis dysfunction (SPD) in the past but both terms can be used inter-changeably.
Around 50-70{8c34c0d03372d798e22443fa1cd79a4c0c458739bec8c1532104b8390ef42220} of pregnant women will experience lumbopelvic pain of some sort and the number that experience severe PGP is around 14-22{8c34c0d03372d798e22443fa1cd79a4c0c458739bec8c1532104b8390ef42220}. For the unlucky 7-10{8c34c0d03372d798e22443fa1cd79a4c0c458739bec8c1532104b8390ef42220} they will continue to experience pain post-partum. With figures suggesting as many as 1 in 5 women experience severe pain then it is a condition that needs to be well managed.
Check out the next blog entry for explanations of the changes that occur during pregnancy to cause PGP and how as a chiropractor I work with pregnant ladies to help alleviate pain.
