ReviewIntegrative medicine research2022
The effectiveness and safety of complementary health approaches to managing postpartum pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Review in Integrative medicine research, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- Use of Massage Therapy for Pain, 2018-2023: A Systematic Review.JAMA network open · 2024Pooled it
- Efficacy of photobiomodulation in perineal trauma after vaginal delivery: a protocol for a randomized, blinded clinical trial.Lasers in medical science · 2026Article
- Effects of early postpartum massage on physical discomfort, mood, and emotional well-being: A randomized controlled trial.European journal of midwifery · 2026Article
- The Effect of Topical Propolis Ointment on Severity of Episiotomy Pain and Wound Healing: A Triple-Blinded Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial.Journal of caring sciences · 2025Article
- Benefits of Complementary Therapies During Pregnancy, Childbirth and Postpartum Period: A Systematic Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWomen experience pain from a number of causes during the postpartum period. Although pharmacological pain relief has shown to be effective, the efficacy of non-pharmacological methods of pain relief will be of interest to breastfeeding women. The aim of this systematic review was to examine the efficacy and safety of complementary approaches to manage postpartum pain.
methodsA search of English language databases from their inception to 2020 was undertaken for randomised controlled trials and included primiparous and multiparous women who experienced postpartum pain up to two weeks post birth. The primary outcome was pain. The risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool.
resultsThirty trials were included in the review, 25 trials (2,413 women) were included in the meta-analysis. Two trials of massage found a reduction in pain following caesarean birth within the first 24 h post birth (MD -2.64, 95-2.82 to -2.46, 184 women, I
conclusionFurther high quality trials are needed to determine the safety and effectiveness of herbal ointment and massage during the early postpartum period.
Indexed as
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.