Effect of a Warm Ginger Lemongrass Herbal Compress on Back Pain Intensity in Postpartum Women
https://doi.org/10.53770/medica.v8i7.1016
Keywords
Postpartum Mothers Lower Back Pain Warm Herbal CompressAbstract
Postpartum lower back pain is a common musculoskeletal condition that can negatively affect maternal comfort, mobility, breastfeeding, infant care, and overall quality of life. This study evaluated the effect of warm herbal compress therapy on lower back pain intensity among postpartum women. A quasi-experimental study with a pretest–posttest control group design was conducted in the Demak area, Indonesia, from August 2025 to January 2026. A total of 102 postpartum mothers on days 2–7 after normal vaginal delivery were recruited using purposive sampling and allocated to an intervention group (n = 51) and a control group (n = 51). Pain intensity was assessed using the Numeric Rating Scale and analyzed using the Mann–Whitney U test and effect size. The findings suggest that the mean pain score in the intervention group decreased from 5.6 on postpartum day 2 to 1.9 on day 7, whereas the control group showed a reduction from 5.7 to 2.2. Significant differences between groups were observed from postpartum day 3 onward (p < 0.05), with large effect sizes on days 4 and 5, indicating a clinically meaningful reduction in pain among mothers receiving warm herbal compress therapy. These findings suggest that warm herbal compress therapy may serve as a safe, simple, and supportive non-pharmacological intervention for alleviating postpartum lower back pain and improving maternal recovery during the early puerperium. Further randomized controlled trials with larger samples and longer follow-up are warranted to confirm its clinical effectiveness.
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