C-Section sensations under the microscope: what do patients really feel?
NCT ID NCT07340970
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Aug 04, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study follows 310 women having planned C-sections with spinal anesthesia. Researchers will ask them about any sensations they feel during surgery, how intense they are, and whether they find them unacceptable. Participants also complete questionnaires about mood and well-being up to 6 months after birth. The goal is to better understand and potentially improve the birth experience.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could help doctors better manage discomfort during C-sections and improve patient experience.
- What could go wrong
- This is an observational study, not testing a treatment. It may not lead to immediate changes in care.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Participants
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About 1,005 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jul 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
Who is studied
Participants are drawn from patients scheduled for planned cesarean delivery at participating tertiary-care obstetric centers in North America. The coordinating center is British Columbia Women's Hospital (Vancouver, Canada), a tertiary-care obstetric referral center performing approximately 15 to 20 elective cesarean deliveries under neuraxial anesthesia per week; additional participating centers include Western University (London, Canada) and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (Little Rock, USA). Potential participants are identified prospectively from each center's daily elective surgical schedule and approached on the day of surgery in the preoperative area, after standard preoperative nursing assessment and once the nurse confirms the patient is amenable to being approached. The sample reflects the obstetric populations served by these academic referral centers across a range of North American obstetric anesthesia practice.
- Ages
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19 years and older
- Sex
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Female participants only
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Pregnant and 19 years of age or older * Single (one) baby at 37 weeks of pregnancy or later * Overall health classified as American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Physical Status II or III * Scheduled for a planned (elective) cesarean delivery using spinal anesthesia (single-shot spinal or combined spinal-epidural) * Able to describe sensations in their own words in one of the study's available languages * Willing and able to give written informed consent before any study procedures * Willing and able to complete online follow-up questionnaires at 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months after delivery Exclusion Criteria: * History of a chronic pain condition (for example, fibromyalgia, chronic pelvic pain, complex regional pain syndrome, or chronic low back pain requiring ongoing treatment) * Regular use of opioids, gabapentinoids (gabapentin or pregabalin), or other centrally acting pain medications during the current pregnancy (occasional acetaminophen use is allowed) * History of a neurological condition that can affect normal sensation (for example, peripheral neuropathy, multiple sclerosis, or spinal cord injury) * Pregnancy with more than one baby (twins or more) * Cesarean delivery planned with an anesthesia method other than single-shot spinal or combined spinal-epidural (for example, topping up an existing labor epidural, or general anesthesia) * Known major fetal abnormality or an expected newborn complication likely to require immediate admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) * Known allergy or other reason the local anesthetic medications used for spinal anesthesia cannot be given * Active substance use disorder
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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BC Women's Hospital
RECRUITINGVancouver, British Columbia, V6H3N1, Canada
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