Relation between Position and Feeling of Labor Pain in Active Phase of Labor

Majority of women is worried about labor pain during pregnancy and it leads to their interest in cesarean section. Today, different medical and non-medical treatments are used to decrease labor pain. This research was conducted to investigate the effect of different positions on the intensity of labor pain in women who were in active phase of labor. This clinical trial was done on 400 women who were selected by purposive sampling method and were in the active phase of labor. First a questionnaire was filled for them based on demographic characteristic and then they were requested to sit down and sleep in supine position intermittently every15 minutes. Severity of pain in abdomen and back was determined by pain scale and recorded data was analyzed by SPSS 11 software and student t-test and Chi-square test. In most of women back pain and abdominal pain was lower in sitting position and by changing position from sitting to supine, intensity of pain sensation increased.Significant relation was observed between back pain and abdominal pain in active phase (p=0.000). Sitting position can decrease pain sensation in back and abdomen and therefore, change in severity of pain from severe to moderate and moderate to mild in active phase of labor.