NCT07419399

Acute Effects of Radiofrequency Diathermy in Postpartum Women With Diastasis Abdominis

• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 48 (estimated)
• Sponsor: University of Valencia · Academic / Other
• Sex: Female
• Age: 20 Years – 45 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This clinical trial aims to compare the immediate tissue response in postpartum women with and without rectus abdominis diastasis (RAD) after undergoing radiofrequency diathermy (RFD) treatment. The main question it seeks to answer is: Do postpartum women with and without RAD exhibit different acute tissue responses in terms of pressure pain threshold, superficial thermal sensitivity, and tissue elasticity? To determine whether there are differences in these acute tissue responses between the groups, researchers will compare RFD with a sham RFD intervention in postpartum women with and without RAD. Participants will receive one session of either RFD or a sham RFD intervention and will complete three assessments: one at baseline and two after the intervention, one immediately afterwards and one 20 minutes afterwards.

Detailed description

A randomised controlled experimental study will be conducted. The sample will consist of 48 postpartum women: 24 who have been diagnosed with pathological RAD and 24 who have not. The participants will be randomly assigned to one of two groups: (i) a radiofrequency diathermy (RFD) group (n = 12), and (ii) a sham RFD group (n = 12). All participants will receive a single treatment session. Evaluations will be performed at three time points: baseline, immediately after the intervention and 20 minutes post-intervention. The variables assessed will include pressure pain threshold, superficial thermal sensitivity and tissue elasticity.

Conditions

• Postpartum
• Rectus Muscle Diastasis

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Radiofrequency diathermy (RFD)	RFD for 20 minutes, with 10 minutes applied using the capacitive method and 10 minutes using the resistive method.
OTHER	Radiofrequency diathermy (RFD)	RFD for 20 minutes, with 10 minutes applied using the capacitive method and 10 minutes using the resistive method
OTHER	Sham radiofrequency diathermy ( sham RFD)	20 minutes of application of the RFD device without energy emission. 10 minutes using the capacitative electrode, and 10 minutes using the resistive electrode.
OTHER	Sham radiofrequency diathermy ( sham RFD)	20 minutes of application of the RFD device without energy emission.10 minutes using the capacitative electrode, and 10 minutes using the resistive electrode.

Timeline

• Start date: 2026-03-30
• Primary completion: 2029-03-30
• Completion: 2029-03-30
• First posted: 2026-02-19
• Last updated: 2026-02-19

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Spain