🏛️ Verified NIH Record • Updated 2026-03-06

Perineal Massage Using A Pelvic Wand During Pregnancy (NCT06986824)

A Pilot Study To Assess The Effect Of Antepartum Perineal Massage Using A Pelvic Wand On Labor Agency And Pelvic Health

🟢 Recruiting Phase4 ⚙️ Medical Device Protocol Sponsor: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

🩺 Plain-English Summary (8th-Grade Level)

There is limited research on the optimal strategy to reduce obstetric laceration, postpartum urinary retention, and postpartum pelvic pain. In systematic reviews, clinician-directed massage of the perineal muscles at the time of birth and patient directed massage of the perineal muscles in the third trimester to inconsistently reduce the incidence of severe obstetric laceration.1,2 However, there is significant heterogeneity of these studies is due in large part to the lack of a standardized protocols and unpredictability of clinician availability to perform perineal massage around the time of birth. The purpose of this study is to understand how perineal massage with a pelvic wand in late pregnancy and during labor influences one's sense of self-control over the labor process and birth experience.

Who can join: To join this study, participants generally need to meet the listed inclusion criteria (5 items) and avoid the listed exclusions (2 items).

Location: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center — Boston, Massachusetts

Age range: 18 Years

🧪 Interventions in This Study

📋 "Do I Qualify?" — 1-Minute Self Screener

Instant Checklist

Check every box below. If you can check all of them, you may meet the study's basic screening requirements (final eligibility is confirmed by the site team).

Usually NOT eligible if any of the following apply:

  • Exclusion Criteria:
  • Contraindication to vaginal birth, active genital herpes infection, fetal anomaly requiring cesarean birth).

🔍 Extracted verbatim from the official NIH eligibility criteria. Always confirm with the study coordinator.

📍 All Participating Trial Locations (1 Sites)

  • Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center — Boston, Massachusetts

📞 Contact the Study Coordinator

Phone: (617) 667-2636

Email: elitman@bidmc.harvard.edu

Coordinator details come directly from the registered NIH protocol. Confirm the study is still recruiting before traveling.

💰 Cost, Insurance & Patient Rights

  • 100% Free Items: The investigational treatment and protocol-required procedures are supplied at zero cost by the sponsor.
  • Routine Patient Care: Under federal law (ACA § 2709) and many state statutes, routine care costs are covered during participation.
  • Voluntary Participation: You may withdraw at any time without affecting your standard medical care.

💡 How to Participate

  1. Check the checklist above to see if you may qualify.
  2. Contact the study coordinator using the phone/email above.
  3. Ask about the visit schedule, what is covered at no cost, and any travel support.
  4. Confirm with your own doctor before making a decision.
🏛️ View Official NIH Record ↗