Effects of Nordic Walking on Prenatal Health

University of Jazan

Status: Completed

Conditions: Prenatal Care; Walking

Treatments: Other: Prenatal Nordic Walking

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06673147

RHPT/024/016 (Other Identifier)

Details and patient eligibility

About

This randomized controlled trial (RCT) aimed to evaluate the effects of Nordic walking (NW) on gait kinematics, musculoskeletal pain, and quality of life in pregnant women.

Full description

Healthy pregnant women (N=50), aged 20-40 years and between 13 and 28 weeks of gestation, experiencing mild to moderate musculoskeletal pain, will be recruited. Participants will be randomized into either an intervention group (NW training) or a control group receiving standard prenatal care. The intervention group will undergo a 4-week learning phase followed by an 8-week NW program (3 sessions per week, 45 minutes per session), led by a certified instructor. Outcome measures will be assessed at baseline, after 4 weeks, and post-intervention (8 weeks), including spatiotemporal gait parameters (will be assessed using the GAITRite system), musculoskeletal pain (will be measured via Visual Analog Scale, VAS), and quality of life (will be measured using the SF-36 Health Survey).

Enrollment: 55 patients

Sex: Female

Ages: 20 to 40 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Healthy women aged 20 to 40 between 13 and 28 weeks into singleton pregnancy.
• Participants must be experiencing mild to moderate musculoskeletal discomfort, such as lower back or pelvic pain,
• Participants have no prior musculoskeletal or neurological diseases.
• They must have no contraindications to exercising throughout pregnancy, as established by obstetrician clearance, and be able to engage in moderate physical activity under medical recommendations

Exclusion criteria

• History of diseases affecting bony structures or lumbar intervertebral discs.
• Pain caused by non-musculoskeletal factors (such as urinary tract infections or obstetric complications).
• Multiple pregnancies, pre-existing mobility conditions, and high-risk pregnancies or complications that restrict physical activity.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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55 participants in 2 patient groups

Intervention group

Experimental group

Description:

It will be receiving Nordic walking training

Treatment:

Other: Prenatal Nordic Walking

Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

This group will receive a standard prenatal care, which included routine obstetric check-ups and general advice on physical activity