Effect of Perineal Cryotherapy on Episiotomy- Associated Pain among Postpartum Women

Background: Episiotomy is the most common surgical incisions made in the perineum. Perineal pain is typically linked to it, which can lower women's quality of life. Aim: To evaluate the effect of perineal cryotherapy on episiotomy- associated pain among postpartum women. Research design: A quasi-experimental research design for two groups with pre/posttest was used. Setting: The study was conducted at the labor & delivery unit of Mansoura University Hospital, Mansoura City, Dakahlia governorate, Egypt. Subjects: One hundred postpartum mothers with episiotomy were chosen as a purposive sample for this study. Tools: Three tools were utilized; a structured interview questionnaire, a numeric rating scale for pain & a postnatal follow- up sheet. Results: There were statistically significant variations in the level of episiotomy associated pain of the studied women between the study and control groups (p ≤ 0.05) at two and four hours of delivery post -intervention. In addition, there was a highly statistically significant difference (p ≤ 0.001) at the second day of delivery post-intervention. Conclusion: This study concluded that post-partum women who applied perineal cryotherapy had lower level of episiotomy- associated pain than post-partum women in the control group. Recommendation: Raise awareness of postpartum women to use perineal cryotherapy after birth to decrease the intensity of episiotomy- associated pain.