Exploring a New Approach to Period Pain: Our Fascial Manipulation® Pilot Study

Can manual therapy help with period pain? Here’s a project we’ve just started.

Many women live with painful periods every month. For some, the pain is strong enough to affect daily activities, work, studies, sleep, and overall quality of life. This condition is called primary dysmenorrhea — menstrual pain without an underlying medical condition.

While medication can help, not everyone wants to rely on painkillers long term. Many women are looking for gentle, non-invasive, and more natural ways to manage their symptoms.

This is what inspired us to start a small research project.

Why this study?

In my clinical work, I’ve seen how the body’s connective tissue — the fascia — can influence pain and function. Fascial Manipulation® (Stecco method) is a specialised manual therapy that works on this connective tissue to restore normal movement and reduce tension in the body.

There is growing interest in how the fascial system may be linked to pelvic and menstrual pain, but research in this area is still very limited.
This pilot study is a first step to explore whether this approach could make a difference for women with primary dysmenorrhea.

What the study involves

• Women aged 18–40 with primary dysmenorrhea

• 6 treatment sessions over approximately 5 months

• Questionnaires to track pain and related symptoms before, during, and after the treatment

Participation is voluntary and free of charge. Risks are minimal and may include temporary soreness after treatment. All information is anonymised and handled according to GDPR and Belgian regulations.

What we hope to learn

This is a small pilot study, designed to answer a simple question:

Could Fascial Manipulation® help reduce menstrual pain?

If the results are encouraging, the next step would be to develop a larger study and contribute to better non-pharmacological treatment options for women.

I’ll be sharing updates here as the project progresses.