Recommendations

Document Overview

Design and created by Guideline Central in participation with the American Physical Therapy Association.

Pelvic Girdle Pain in the Antepartum Population

American Physical Therapy Association

Publication Date: May 1, 2017

Page Last Updated: May 5, 2026

American Physical Therapy Association Evidence Grading System

Grade of Evidence
Grade	Recommendation	Description
A	Strong	A preponderance of level I and/or level II studies supports the recommendation, This must include at least 1 level I study.
B	Moderate	A single high-quality randomized controlled trial or a preponderance of level II evidence supports the recommendation.
C	Weak	A single level II study or a preponderance of level II and TV studies supports the recommendation.
D	Conflicting	Higher-quality studies conducted on this topic disagree with respect to their conclusions. The recommendation is based on these conflicting studies.
E	Theoretical/foundational	A preponderance of evidence from animal or cadaver studies, from conceptual models/principles or from basic science/bench research supports this conclusion.
F	Expert opinion	Best practice based on the clinical experience of the guidelines development team.

Document Overview

Document Title: Pelvic Girdle Pain in the Antepartum Population

Authoring Society: American Physical Therapy Association

Document Publication Date: May 1, 2017

Page Last Reviewed/Updated: May 5, 2026

Document Type: Guideline

Country of Publication: United States

Full Text Freely Available: Yes

Full Text Guideline: journals.lww.com/jwhpt/Fulltext/2017/05000/Pelvic_Girdle_Pain_in_the_Antepartum_Population__.7.aspx

Source Citation: Clinton, Susan C. PT, DScPT, OCS, WCS, FAAOMPT1; Newell, Alaina PT, DPT, WCS, CLT-LANA2; Downey, Patricia A. PT, PhD, DPT3; Ferreira, Kimberly PT, PhD, MSPT4 Pelvic Girdle Pain in the Antepartum Population: Physical Therapy Clinical Practice Guidelines Linked to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health From the Section on Women's Health and the Orthopaedic Section of the American Physical Therapy Association, Journal of Women's Health Physical Therapy: May 2017 - Volume 41 - Issue 2 - p 102-125 doi: 10.1097/JWH.0000000000000081

Document Scope, Criteria, and Use Cases

Scope: Assessment and Screening, Counseling, Management, Treatment

Diseases/Conditions (MeSH)

D059388 - Pelvic Girdle Pain

Keywords: antepartum, pelvic girdle pain, physical therapy

Target Patient Population: Pregnant women experiencing pelvic girdle pain

Inclusion Criteria: Female, Adult

Health Care Settings: Ambulatory, Home Health, Hospital, Outpatient

Intended Users: Nurse, Nurse Midwife, Nurse Practitioner, Occupational Therapist, Physical Therapist, Physician, Physician Assistant

Recommendation Development Processes & Methodology

Number of Source Documents: 105

Literature Search Start Date: Sunday, July 1, 2012

Methodologist involvement?: Yes

Includes multi-disciplinary group?: Yes

Includes systematic review?: Yes

Grades quality of strength of evidence?: Yes

Grades quality of strength of recommendation?: Yes

Pelvic Girdle Pain in the Antepartum Population

Recommendations

Risk Factors

Postural Changes

Clinical Course

Diagnosis/Classification

Differential Diagnosis

Imaging Studies

Examination—Outcome Measures

Examination—Activity Limitation and Participation Restriction Measures

Intervention—Support Belts

Intervention—Exercise

Intervention—Manual Therapy

American Physical Therapy Association Evidence Grading System

Document Overview

Document Scope, Criteria, and Use Cases

Recommendation Development Processes & Methodology