THURSDAY, Sept. 18, 2003 (HealthDayNews) -- Music seems to offer a note of pain relief for woman during childbirth.
A study done at two hospitals in Thailand found music can reduce the sensation of labor pain and delay the emotional distress that may accompany childbirth.
The study included two groups of women, aged 20 to 30, all having their first baby. Women in one group chose from among five types of calming music and listened to it for the first three hours in hospital after their active labor started.
The women in the second group received standard care during labor. Standard care at the two hospitals was to not give analgesic medication to women in labor because of its effect on the infants.
The women's reports of labor pain were measured during the first three hours of labor. The women who listened to music had much less pain and distress than the women in the other group.
The study notes that better pain management during labor may speed a woman's recovery after childbirth and improve the mother-infant relationship.
The study appeared in a recent issue of Pain Management Nursing.
More information
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