Assistance in immediate puerperium: the role of physiotherapy

Objective: To assess the effects of physical therapy intervention for women in immediately postpartum attended in a public hospital in the city of Barueri, São Paulo, Brazil. Methods: Women in the immediate postpartum period after vaginal delivery or cesarean section were included. They underwent a physical therapy evaluation, followed by a single intervention (45 minutes), including diaphragm and abdominal re-education exercises, pelvic floor muscle training, metabolic exercises, elimination of flatus maneuver and guidelines regarding posture, early walking and breastfeeding encouraging. Before and after intervention, the visual analogue scale (VAS) of pain and the subjective scale for the general welfare were applied. For statistical analysis, the significance level used was 5%. Results: Fifty women, 25 vaginal deliveries and 25 caesarean sections were evaluated and treated. After intervention, which achieved 100% compliance, there was a significant improvement in pain in the cesarean group (3.99±2.11 to 2.85±2.63) and in the vaginal delivery group (2.00±1.52 to 1.34±0.92) (p