This study aimed to systematically review the articles on factors affecting sexual function during menopause. Searching articles indexed in Pubmed, Science Direct, Iranmedex, EMBASE, Scopus, and Scientific Information Database databases, a total number of 42 studies published between 2003 and 2013 were selected. Age, estrogen deficiency, type of menopause, chronic medical problems, partner's sex problems, severity of menopause symptoms, dystocia history, and health status were the physical factors influencing sexual function of menopausal women. There were conflicting results regarding the amount of androgens, hormonal therapy, exercise/physical activity, and obstetric history. In the mental-emotional area, all studies confirmed the impact of depression and anxiety. Social factors, including smoking, alcohol consumption, the quality of relationship with husband, partner's loyalty, sexual knowledge, access to health care, a history of divorce or the death of a husband, living apart from a spouse, and a negative understanding of women's health were found to affect sexual function; however, there were conflicting results regarding the effects of education, occupation, socioeconomic status, marital duration, and frequency of sexual intercourse.

Factors affecting sexual function in menopause: A review article

Background
Pregnancy is the best time in a woman’s life. Hormonal and physiological changes influence women’s well-being, mood, and sexual behavior.

The sexual activity during pregnancy among a group of Iranian women.

Background and aims: The process of giving birth is very stressing for the mother. Meanwhile, maternity ward staff’s lack of awareness of mothers’ fears make mothers feel lonely and helpless. This study aimed to explore women’s perceptions of labor support during vaginal delivery. Materials and methods: This exploratory qualitative study used qualitative content analysis to explore Iranian mothers’ experiences of labor support. Data were collected using observations and semi-structured interviews with 25 individuals. The participants were recruited through a purposive sampling method. Results: Three categories, including “involvement of the spouse in the labor process”, “asking for a companion during labor”, and “mother’s self-care to cope with labor pain”, emerged during data analysis. These categories were merged to form the main theme of “trying to comply with the labor process”. Conclusion: Women believed that the presence of a companion, e.g. their husband, a family member, or a doula, during labor helped them better deal with the labor process, particularly when they felt lonely. Health care providers are expected to consider the needs of mothers and try to provide holistic support for mothers during labor pain. Implications for practice: It seems that some mothers adopted particular coping strategies without receiving any relevant training. It is noteworthy that although mothers may make every effort to minimize their pain, health professionals should also practice medical approaches to help them through the process of labor. © 2017 Fathi Najafi et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

/pdf/the-best-encouraging-persons-in-labor-a-content-analysis-of-337waj4nqo.pdf

The best encouraging persons in labor: A content analysis of Iranian mothers' experiences of labor support.

Postpartum anxiety and depression are prevalent disorders. The authors of this study aimed to determine the effects of zinc and magnesium supplements on depressive symptoms and anxiety in postpartum women referred to three governmental, educational hospitals in Tabriz, Iran during 2014-2015. In this triple-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial, the participants were randomly assigned to the zinc sulfate, magnesium sulfate, and placebo groups (n = 33 per group). The intervention groups received a 27-mg zinc sulfate tablet or 320-mg magnesium sulfate tablet per day for 8 weeks, whereas the control group received a placebo tablet each day during the same period. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were completed before and 8 weeks after the intervention. Blood samples were drawn from each participant to determine serum levels of zinc and magnesium before intervention at 48 hours after delivery. Also, a 24-hour dietary questionnaire was used during the first and last 3 days of the intervention. Adjusting for baseline scores as well as zinc and magnesium serum levels, no significant difference was observed between groups 8 weeks after delivery in mean scores of depressive symptoms (p = .553), state anxiety (p = .995), and trait anxiety (p = .234). This study concluded magnesium and zinc did not reduce postpartum anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Effects of zinc and magnesium supplements on postpartum depression and anxiety: A randomized controlled clinical trial

Introduction: There is lack of information on couple’s sexual relation during pregnancy and also the lack of a national written training protocol in this regard in Iran. State authorities want to develop and implement such a protocol. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effectiveness of a sex education package on the sexual function of pregnant women. Methods: 88 women in their 8 to 14 weeks of pregnancy were randomly allocated into two groups of intervention and control. In the intervention group a midwife carried out sex education in two 60 minutes lecture sessions and group discussions for the participants. Moreover, educational booklets were distributed at the end of the first session and couple’s questions were answered by telephone. In the control group women were taught nutritional education with the same procedure. Sexual function was evaluated using the female sexual function index (FSFI) before and four weeks after the education. Paired t-test, student's t-test and chi square were used to analyze the data. Results: There were no significant differences among the groups in terms of their baseline characteristics, including mean sexual function scores before the education. After the education the mean of the total score of sexual function was significantly higher in the intervention group compared with the control group [mean difference 7.0 (95% CI 4.1, 9.9)]. Such a significant difference also existed in all the six domains of sexual function, i.e. desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction and pain (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Providing such sexual education during routine prenatal care may improve couples’ sexual health during pregnancy.

https://jcs.tbzmed.ac.ir/PDF/JCS-1-173.pdf

R Hasan Zahraei

Papers

Sexual dysfunction in menopause

Supportive role of the midwife in preventing postpartum depression

Study of the related factors in couples’ sexual relationship during pregnancy