Monirolsadate Hosseini Tabaghdehi

Background: Childbirth and its related experiences have the potential physical and psychological effects on women’s lives in the short and long term. Many factors play an effective role in the positive and negative childbirth experiences of the mother. This study aimed to examine the prevalence and factors affecting negative labor experiences.Methods: The current research reviewed articles related to “childbirth experiences” in international databases (Pub Med – Scopus – Web of Science – Ovid – clinical key – ProQuest – ScienceDirect – the Cochrane Library), and national databases (SID, Magiran, Iranmedex, and Irandoc). A total number of 3654 articles were found after the elimination of repetitive and unrelated articles, 18 articles were evaluated.Result: In this study, 18 studies entered this systematic review, 8 studies examined the prevalence of childbirth experience. The prevalence of negative childbirth experience was 6.8–44%. The factors related to the childbirth experience includes: individual, such as age, parity, fear, self-efficacy, participation, control, expectations, preparation, and interpersonal, such as husband support, care provider support, unexpected medical problems, such as prolonged labor, stimulation and induction, forceps delivery, emergency cesarean section, and the use of analgesics in the mother, low Apgar score and transfer to the NICU in the child.Conclusions: This review showed the varies factors related to childbirth experience, these findings suggest future research through qualitative studies that why they influence the birth experience.

Aim: This study aimed to explore the meaning of a positive childbirth experience expressed by women who had given birth in Iran. Design: Qualitative exploratory study. Methods: This is a qualitative study conducted on 10 women aged 20-38 years with positive childbirth experience. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews from 72 hr-2 months after childbirth. Results: Data analysis led to into two themes and five subthemes. The themes include control and empowerment. Control theme consisted of three subthemes of preparation, coping and support; and empowerment theme consisted of two subthemes of self-efficacy and self-esteem. Women's sense of empowerment to childbirth can be the result of a positive childbirth experience. Therefore, it seems that providing positive experience factors of childbirth plays an important role in women's self-efficacy and self-esteem, which requires cooperation and effort at the level of the individual, family, education system and healthcare system.

OBJECTIVE: Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a clinical condition with physical and psychological symptoms affecting female students' quality of life, social activity, and school performance. Since most studies have focused on adult women, this study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of moderate-severe PMS, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), and their related factors in high school students. METHODS: The participants of this cross-sectional study, conducted in 2019, were 900 high school students in Sari, north of Iran. They were selected by census method from six high schools. Data were collected using Premenstrual Syndrome Screening Tool and General Health Questionnaire. RESULTS: The prevalence of moderate-severe PMS and PMDD were 33.9% and 12.3%, respectively. According to the logistic regression model, dysmenorrhea was significantly associated with a higher prevalence of moderate-severe PMS [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 2.356, confidence interval (CI): 1.706-3.254, p < 0.0001] and PMDD (AOR: 1.924, CI: 1.186-3.120, p = 0.0008). Moreover, optimal general health was associated with a lower prevalence of moderate-severe PMS (AOR: 0.326, CI: 0.221-0.480, p < 0.0001) and PMDD (AOR: 0.309, CI: 0.161-0.593, p < 0.0001). The findings revealed that a family history of PMS and adding excess salt to the food were associated with a higher prevalence of PMDD (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Although many high school students do not meet the criteria for PMDD, many experience PMS, which could be diminished with proper diet and improved general health.

INTRODUCTION: Pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period cause significant physical and psychological changes in mothers, leading to changes in their sexual self-concept and adverse effects on their sexual self-confidence and self-efficacy. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effect of sexual education on postpartum women's sexual self-efficacy and self-confidence. METHOD: This randomized interventional study was conducted on 115 women who had given birth at least six weeks ago and attended healthcare centers. Using convenience sampling, the researchers randomly allocated the participants into two intervention and control groups through a block size of six. The intervention group received six 90-minute online training sessions based on the sexual self-concept model over one month, while the control group received routine care. To collect data, the self-efficacy and sexual confidence questionnaires by Buzwell and Rosenthal were used before the intervention, immediately after the intervention, and one month later. RESULTS: The study findings demonstrated no significant differences in demographic characteristics, sexual self-confidence, and sexual self-efficacy scores between the two groups before the intervention. However, the repeated measures ANOVA results revealed a substantial increase in sexual self-confidence and self-efficacy scores over time in the intervention group immediately after participating in the training sessions and one month later. CONCLUSION: Considering the effect of training based on the sexual self-concept model on postpartum women, the researchers recommend using this model to improve their sexual self-efficacy and self-confidence after childbirth. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study is registered at the Iranian Registry Clinical Trial (IRCT20220530055025N1).