Search

Purpose To determine the influence of a patient education and care program on the quality of life (QOL) of female patients undergoing non‐assisted reproductive technology (ART) fertility treatment. Methods Participants completed the MOS 36‐Item Short‐Form Health Survey and fertility QOL (FertiQoL) questionnaires at baseline and at 3, 6, and 12 months of treatment. The responses of patients who underwent three sessions of the program (at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months of treatment) were compared with those of patients who did not receive the program. Results This study compared 69 patients who received an additional care program with 104 patients in the control group, all from 13 facilities. Treatment FertiQoL responses (p = 0.004) and treatment tolerability (p = 0.043) differed between the program and control groups at 3 months using the repeated measures mixed model. The cost of treatment per pregnancy was lower in the program group than in the control group. Conclusion The patient education and care program provided by reproductive fertility specialists or fertility nurses during non‐ART fertility programs improves patient satisfaction.

Background Pelvic floor muscles support the pelvic organs and control voiding. The first choice in the repair of pelvic floor function that is damaged during pregnancy and delivery is pelvic floor muscle training, which involves repeated muscle relaxation and contraction. However, as muscle contractions cannot be visualised, it is difficult to assess whether patients understand how to contract them. Therefore, we assessed patients’ comprehension of pelvic floor muscle contraction by comparing two teaching methods, vaginal palpation and transabdominal ultrasound, following vaginal delivery. We hypothesised that vaginal palpation is better than transabdominal ultrasound in this regard. Methods This randomised controlled trial conducted in facilities in Tokyo, Japan between July 2018 and January 2019 included women aged ≥ 20 years at 4–6 weeks after vaginal delivery. The randomisation involved website-based centralised allocation. The primary outcome was a change in bladder base displacement during pelvic floor muscle contraction before and after training, which was measured using transabdominal ultrasound. Participants performed three contractions for 3 s, and the mean value was used for statistical analysis. The secondary outcome was a change in understanding the contraction before and after training, which was measured using a five-point Likert scale questionnaire. Outcomes were analysed using Welch’s t-test. Results Sixty-five participants were randomly allocated to the vaginal palpation group (n = 32) and transabdominal ultrasound group (n = 33). Baseline characteristics were similar between the groups. Changes in bladder base displacement were not significantly different between the groups (p = 0.181). Within-group analyses showed that bladder base displacement was large in both groups after the respective intervention. There were no significant differences in any of the outcomes between the two groups before and after the intervention. Conclusions Vaginal palpation and transabdominal ultrasound might be useful for comprehending pelvic floor muscle contraction after vaginal delivery. Trial registration: UMIN 000032304. Registered 18 April 2018, https://upload.umin.ac.jp/cgi-open-bin/icdr_e/ctr_view.cgi?recptno=R000036820.

The ubiquitin ligase F‐box and WD repeat domain‐containing 7 (FBXW7) is responsible for degrading diverse oncoproteins and is considered a tumor suppressor in many human cancers. Inhibiting FBXW7 enhances the malignant potential of several cancers. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of FBXW7 in cholangiocarcinoma. We found that FBXW7 expression was associated with clinicopathological outcomes in cholangiocarcinoma patients. Both disease‐free and overall survival were significantly worse in the low‐FBXW7 group than in the high‐FBXW7 group (P = .001 and P

Background: This study aimed to clarify the supportive care needs and medical care requests of male patients during their infertility treatment to be able to provide them with optimal nursing care. Methods: A self-filled questionnaire survey was conducted in 411 male patients who were undergoing infertility treatment at 4 human reproductive clinics. The investigation period was from April to August 2016. This research used across-sectional study design. The submission of the filled questionnaire was taken as an indication of agreement and consent to the research. The main contents of the questionnaire were attributions, care needs, and medical care requests of male patients. The care needs were evaluated by descriptive statistics, and the free descriptions of the medical care requests were analyzed for their contents qualitatively and recursively. The study was performed after the approval of the Research Ethics Review Committee. Results: The number of valid responses was 331 (80.5%). The care needs of the male patients were warm care from their wives, provision of information on their treatment, daily life information for conceiving, and evaluation data. The 6 categories of the open-ended responses were as follows: warm support, improvement of examination environment, adjustment of medical examination schedule, information provision, support from wife, and subsidy for treatment costs. These were extracted from the medical care requests by qualitative inductive analysis. Conclusions: The care needs and medical care requests of male patients undergoing infertility treatment were mainly on being provided information and supporting their wives. As supporting nursing care for these male patients, provision of sufficient information regarding the examination results and infertility treatment is recommended, and environmental considerations peculiar to male patients are necessary. Consideration from female patients is also an indispensable factor similarly to the provision of care for male patients.

Purpose: The aims of this study were to clarify the complaints and concerns expressed by couples that included a partner with male infertility, certified infertility nurses’ nursing practice and perceptions of nursing for these couples, and factors related to these perceptions and practices. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted. Prospective participants were sent an anonymous self-administered questionnaire containing items pertaining to the complaints and concerns expressed by couples that included a partner with male infertility, and nursing practice and perceptions of nursing for these couples. Results: In total, 133 questionnaires were distributed, 74 responses were received, and 69 of these responses were valid. Couples’ complaints and concerns consisted of a three-factor structure comprising psychological burden, lack of knowledge and information, and problems with partners. Nurses reported that the complaints and concerns of couples that included a partner with male infertility differed between male and female partners. Factors related to nursing practice and nurses’ perceptions of nursing were identified. Conclusions: Participants felt that psychological burden and problems were more serious for female partners than they were for male partners, and concern regarding the physical health of the partner receiving treatment was greater in male partners than it was in female partners.

[Purpose] To clarify factors contributing to habituation of pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT) for urinary incontinence. [Subjects and Methods] We included 13 healthy females and examined diurnal and nocturnal urination frequency at initial program participation and at 3 months. The survey used the International Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire-Short Form (ICIQ-SF), a 10-level self-assessment of anxiety associated with urinary incontinence, and a 10-level self-evaluation of PFMT understanding and skill acquisition. We evaluated PFMT practice at home and postures that facilitated PFMT. The practice of PFMT at home was surveyed during a 3-month period. [Results] Compared to baseline, the level of skill acquisition assessed by the ICIQ-SF and PFMT according to the 10-level self-evaluation improved significantly at 3 months. The rate of PFMT sessions performed at home per week was high. The number of times PFMT was performed per day was positively correlated with level of understanding and acquisition of skills pertaining to PFMT, according to the 10-level self-assessment. [Conclusion] By incorporating behavior modification techniques appropriate for urinary incontinence and by increasing the level of understanding regarding incontinence and PFMT, as well as the level of skill acquisition, self-efficacy increased. This may have motivated habituation of PFMT.

In this study, impact of a polymorphism of CYP2C19 on drug–drug interaction (DDI) was examined for etizolam. The effect of itraconazole (a strong CYP3A inhibitor) on the pharmacokinetics of etizolam (a substrate of CYP2C19 and CYP3A) was assessed in both extensive metabolizers (EMs) and poor metabolizers (PMs) of CYP2C19. Sixteen participants (8 EMs and 8 PMs) received a single oral dose of etizolam (0.25 mg) on day 1. The participants ingested itraconazole (200 mg twice a day) on days 2–5. On day 5, participants received an oral dose of etizolam (0.25 mg) again. Before coadministration of itraconazole (day 1), the area under the time–plasma concentration curve from time zero to infinity (AUC∞) of etizolam was higher in PMs than in EMs (2.65-fold, P

[Purpose] The objective of this study was to clarify the effects of increased number of steps on body composition, physical functions, vascular functions, health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) and self-efficacy in elderly people. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 47 elderly persons who resided in Port Island in the Chuo Ward of Kobe City in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. After the calculation of the mean preintervention physical activity (PA), the subjects were instructed to increase their PA to a target baseline + 1,300 steps/day. Body composition, physical functions, vascular functions, HR-QOL, and self-efficacy were measured at baseline, after 3 and 6 months. These items were compared between a group that increased their PA and a group that did not. [Results] After 6 months, 26.1% of the subjects achieved the PA target. No significant improvements were observed in body composition, physical functions, vascular functions, or self-efficacy for either group after 3 and 6 months. However, the HR-QOL improved significantly after 6 months in the achievement group. [Conclusion] Although the intervention to increase PA did not produce significant improvements after 6 months in body composition, physical functions, vascular functions, or self-efficacy, the HR-QOL improved significantly during this relatively short period.

Chronic inflammation is involved in the development of colon cancer by inducing mutations and aberrant DNA methylation in colon epithelial cells. Furthermore, there is growing evidence that colonic microbiota modulates the inflammation response in the host and influences colon tumorigenesis. However, the influence of colonic microbiota on aberrant DNA methylation remains unknown. Here, we show the effect of colonic microbes on DNA methylation and tumorigenicity using a mouse model of human ulcerative colitis. Mice treated with azoxymethane (AOM) and dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) showed an increase in degree of colitis, as estimated by body weight, occult blood, and stool consistency/diarrhea at 2 weeks after treatment, but treatment with antibiotics markedly reduced the severity of the colitis. Although mucosal hyperplasia and increased inflammation‐related genes were observed in the colonic epithelial cells of the AOM/DSS‐treated mice, treatment with antibiotics abrogated these changes. In addition, treatment with antibiotics significantly decreased the number of mucosal nodules from 5.9 ± 5.3 to 0.2 ± 0.6 (P

Aim To dentify the predictors of the quality of life (QOL) of infertile men who are undergoing infertility treatments in Japan and to create a QOL prediction model, with the main variables aimed at providing more adequate support to male patients. Methods This cross-sectional study used the quantitative data that were collected from 321 returned self-report questionnaires that had been distributed to the men of 411 couples who were undergoing fertility treatment. The following four scales were used to measure the main outcomes: FertiQoL, psychological distress, spousal support, and workplace support. The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, multiple regression analyses, and structural equation modeling. Results The number of returned questionnaires was 321 (78.1%). The QOL that was measured by FertiQoL was significantly lower in those men who were diagnosed with male factor infertility than in the other male patients. The two significant predictors of QOL were: spousal support and the infertility period. The structural equation modeling revealed that the same factors were related to QOL. Conclusions Male factor infertility, less spousal support, and a longer period of infertility were associated with a poorer QOL of those men who were undergoing infertility treatment. These results suggest that focusing on infertility causes, the length of the infertility period, and the couples' partnership during treatment is needed to provide full support to men who have been diagnosed with infertility.

Background Pancreatic cancer with distant metastases is classified as “unresectable,” for which the standard treatment is systemic chemotherapy. The effectiveness of radical resection for pancreatic cancer with distant metastases is unknown. Here, we report a case of long term survival treated with conversion surgery following chemotherapy after diagnostic metastasectomy for pancreatic cancer with synchronous liver metastasis. Case presentation A 73-year-old man was referred to our hospital to examine and treat for cancer of the pancreatic body. Computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a 26-mm hypovascular tumor in contact with the common hepatic artery (CHA) (> 180°), the celiac artery (

Aim The goals of this study were to develop a partnership causal model and verify the model's fitness for couples undergoing fertility treatment. Methods A purposive sample of 1004 consenting participants (502 couples) undergoing fertility treatment was selected from five fertility clinics across Japan. A mailed self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. The partnership causal model was examined with structural equation modeling. Results A total of 565 questionnaires were returned (56.3%) and the number of valid responses was 466 (46.4%). The factor “medical professionals' support (nurses and physicians)” influenced the couples' “partnership” (β = 0.16) and had a direct effect on the men's quality of life (QOL) and an indirect effect on the women's QOL (β = 0.20). Couples' partnership had a significant impact on couples' QOL (β = 0.20) and on “satisfaction in their relationship with their partner” (β = 0.48). The multi-population path analysis revealed that married couples influenced each other's perceptions of their partnership (men, β = 0.84; women, β = 0.88). Additionally, the spouse's partnership influenced both individual's QOL (men, β = 0.77; women, β = 0.77) and the satisfaction with the relationship (men, β = 0.46; women, β = 0.59). The participants' “distress” significantly and negatively affected the participants' QOL. Conclusion The results revealed that for a couple undergoing fertility treatments, a strong partnership maintains their QOL, and this could decrease the couples' distress (particularly in women). Partnership was also related to the variability of “medical professionals' support”.

Background Undifferentiated embryonal sarcoma of the liver (UESL) is a rare malignant mesenchymal tumor that usually occurs in children and is rarely diagnosed in adults. Case presentation Here, we describe the case of a 65-year-old woman who presented with a huge cystic lesion in the liver. Laboratory studies performed on admission showed modest inflammation, poor nutrition, and elevated levels of total bilirubin, alkaline phosphatase, and γ-glutamyl transferase. Computed tomography showed a well-defined, heterogeneous tumor with multiple cysts involving the right lobe and the medial segment of the liver, with a maximum diameter of 16 cm. Positron emission tomography/computed tomographic scans showed the uptake of 2-(fluorine-18)-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose in a part of the cyst. The patient was diagnosed with mucinous cystadenocarcinoma or sarcoma of the liver and underwent right trisectionectomy. Histopathological studies revealed that the tumor was composed of pleomorphic and polynuclear dyskaryotic cells with eosinophilic globules in the cytoplasm. Mesenchymal hamartoma-like tissue was observed in the peripheral part of the tumor. Immunohistochemical analyses showed the tumor stained with vimentin, α-smooth muscle actin, desmin, α1-antitrypsin, and α1-antichymotripsin. Therefore, a histological diagnosis of UESL was made. Eighteen months following treatment, two recurrent tumors in the remnant liver were detected and resection of the recurrent tumors was performed. Conclusions A UESL should be considered in the differential diagnosis of large cystic hepatic lesions. Although the prognosis of UESL is extremely unfavorable, aggressive surgical resection should be the most important factor for ensuring long-term survival.

With the resources left in Onoda Cement Company (established in 1881), this study examined the transition of a company organization in the Meiji and Taisho era. It focused especially on its hiring process and personnel distribution based on the each employee's credentials. The findings are as follows:1) After 1901, due to the complexity of the company organization, the administrative department was expanded to five different sections. One of them was the engineering office which controlled the manufacturing department.2) Shortly after the establishment of the company, the workers were assigned to two separate positions; “office worker” and “field worker.” The office workers were in charge of management and the field workers carried the labor work at the manufacturing sites.3) The field workers were categorized into “workman and so forth” and “roustabout.” Furthermore, the former was subdivided into “factory hand” who were the regular staff, “trainee” who had a possibility to be employed as regular staff in the near future , and “temporary workers” who were employed on a temporary basis. The specific qualifications were required for each position.4) The percentage of the staff in the position of “workman and so forth,” which was consisted of “factory hand” and “trainee”, was forty to fifty out of all of the field workers. The temporary workers accounted for forty to fifty percent, as well. The roustabouts accounted for ten percent. The female laborer accounted for ten to fifteen percent, but none of them was treated as regular staff.5) At the manufacturing sites, the personnel distribution was adjusted corresponding to the number of each equipment/duty that the workers handled.6) By introducing the continuous kilns (Dieztsch's one), the three eight-hour shift system was adopted. Furthermore, the personnel distribution of factory hands was determined based on both the fixed number of personnel and the present ones.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a support program for the stress management of women undergoing fertility treatment to reduce stress related to infertility and treatment. Methods: We randomly assigned seven institutions into an experimental group (four institutions, n = 96) and a control group (three institutions, n = 44) using cluster randomization. The women in the experimental group were asked to continue stress management homework for 3 months. A nurse provided feedback on the homework every month. Those in the control group were given only the booklet. The primary outcomes were the risk ratios of “depression” and “anxiety” according to the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. The secondary outcomes were “health status” from the Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form 36-item Health Survey (SF-36) v2 and “satisfaction” from the Visual Analogue Scale. We excluded 15 women who became pregnant and performed an intention-to-treat analysis of 125 women. Results: There were no differences in the incidence of depression and anxiety between the experimental and control groups. There were significant interaction effects between the program and time in the scores of the two subscales of SF-36 and the summary. There was no difference in satisfaction. The use of ovulation-enhancing agents showed that the scores of “role functioning physical” and “physical component summary” in the non-use subgroup were higher at 2 and 3 months in the experimental group, compared to the control group. Conclusions: Positive effects of the support program were observed on two subscales of the SF-36 in the subgroup that did not use ovulation-enhancing agents.

Most of high performance III-V compound semiconductor devices are fabricated utilizing heterostructures. However, when the heterostructures are grown by OMVPE, a compositional grading arises at a hetero-interfaces. The compositional grading may deteriorate the performance of the compound semiconductor devices. We have investigated the degree of the compositional grading at the interfaces using X-ray crystal truncation rod (CTR) scattering measurement. The X-ray CTR scattering measurement is a powerful technique to investigate the buried interfaces and determine the distributions of atoms quantitatively at an atomic-scale. In this work, we studied on the distributions of group-III atoms at InP/GaInAs interfaces grown by OMVPE with different growth rates, focusing on the influence of the exchange reaction of the group-III atoms near the surface during the growing. The experimental results showed that the degree of distributions of Ga atoms increased with the decrease of the growth rate. It suggested that the distribution of Ga atoms at interfaces were influenced by the exchange reaction. In order to discuss the exchange reaction, a calculation to simulate the distribution of Ga atoms was conducted considering potential energy of Ga in InP layers. The results showed that Ga atoms should exchange during the growth in top-most 3 atomic layers.

In comparison with Lifetime Homes (Japanese version), two Japanese Guidelines for the settlement of aged persons were studied on the universal degree from the viewpoints of continuous self-supporting life and social participation.The following technological items are listed on the basis of their transferability;1) The two Japanese guidelines premises the usual existence of assistance or care workers.2) The additional items are necessary for the Lifetime Homes(Japanese version) owing to the floor finish and thermal environment according with Japanese lifestyle.3) In spite of new construction or refurbishment of residences on the Guidelines, it is not easy to make ensure the continuous self-supporting life and social participation.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to identify the competencies of genetic nursing practise required for general and genetic nurses. Methods: We conducted a four-stage survey using a Delphi process. We conducted an interview with 27 nurses who were involved in genetics-related care and extracted 89 items in seven categories. In the second survey, we mailed a questionnaire to 20 experts in genetics. In the third and fourth surveys, we asked 491 health-care providers, including nurses and physicians, who were involved in genetics-related care and agreed to participate in the study at 113 institutions in 40 prefectures. The respondents were asked to choose one of three options in each of 89 items: “A: General nurse’s role”, “B: Genetic nurse’s role”, and “C: Not appropriate as the nurse’s role”. The data were collected from August 2000 to March 2001. There were 295 final subjects, and the response rate was 60%. Results: The competencies required for general nurses were identified as “living support”, “psychological support”, and “identification of the client’s wishes”, while those required for genetic nurses were “provision and exchange of accurate genetic information”, “referral to and collaboration with other organisations”, and “client support to understand disease.” Conclusions: These results suggest a direction for genetic nursing curricula. It is our challenge to incorporate genetics into the education programming.

Objectives: Aortic stiffness, determined by the pulse wave velocity (PWV), is an independent marker of cardiovascular risk. PWV is mainly influenced by age-associated alterations of arterial wall structure and blood pressure (BP). To determine the impact of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) on arterial compliance in normotensive, postmenopausal women, we examined the effects of HRT on PWV. Methods: Fifty-six postmenopausal women aged 50/70 years were recruited into the present retrospective study from the patients visiting our menopause clinic. Twenty-seven women who were prescribed HRT (14 on estrogen alone and 13 on estrogen plus progestogen) for several months to 6 years and an age-matched group of 29 women not on HRT were studied (Study 1). Nine postmenopausal women were also studied before and at 4 weeks of the treatment of estrogen replacement therapy (ERT) (Study 2). Brachial to ankle PWV (baPWV), which is correlated with aortic PWV, was determined using an automatic device, BP-203PRE. Results: In Study 1, PWV was significantly correlated with age in both groups (controls: r/0.392, P/0.035; HRT group: r/0.471, P/0.013), and HRT significantly lowered the PWV value at all ages examined (Mean9 /S.D. of baPWV in controls: 1382.29 /114.1; HRT: 1245.39 /124.8, P/0.0001). In Study 2, baPWV decreased significantly after ERT (P B/0.05), without a significant change in systolic BP (P/0.851). Conclusions: Estrogen appears to improve arterial compliance independently of BP within 4 weeks. # 2003 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Purpose : This article introduces the use of a measurement device that was recently developed.Materials and Methods : This device was designed so that it can estimate changes in occlusal vertical dimension more precisely to measure the distance between the subnasal and the gnathion. It has several indicators and two scales. When positioned correctly, this device can measure, for example, the distance between the subnasal and gnathion on a patient or the distance of the interalveolar crest of the ridge of dentures. The authors performed an experiment using this measuring device to determine vertical dimension. Resin plates were used to raise the bite in a patient's mouth. The changes in the jaw position were measured by 11 clinicians using the device, and the measurements were statistically analyzed.Results : The results of the experiment confirmed that the device is stable. There was no correlation between the number of clinical years of experience of the clinicians and the distance measured from the subnasal to the gnathion of the subject.Conclusion : Stable measurements can be achieved with this measurement device.

Current technology nodes, as well as subsequent generations necessitate ongoing improvements to the mix-and-match overlay (MMO) capabilities of lithography scanners. This work will introduce newly developed scanner solutions to address this requirement, and performance data from the latest generation immersion scanner, the NSR-S622D, will be introduced. Enhanced MMO accuracy is imperative for the 22 nm half-pitch and future technology nodes. In order for the matched overlay accuracy to approach single machine overlay (SMO) capabilities, MMO errors must be reduced further. The dominant MMO error sources can be divided into three main areas: SMO, lens distortion matching and wafer grid matching. Nikon continues to decrease these matching error contributors over time, and the latest generation NSRS622D immersion scanner provides a number of innovative solutions to satisfy the most demanding overlay matching requirements ; as a result MMO performance within 3nm is achieved on S622D. Moreover, overlay master system is developed for further product overlay accuracy and stability improvement.

Inverted papillomas in the nasal and paranasal cavities are uncommon benign tumors which are very difficult to distinguish from other nasal tumors and are prone to recurrence and malignant change. They are usually situated on the lateral nasal wall. Inverted papilloma of the nasal septum is rare. Our patient, an adult female, had inverted papillomas on both sides of the nasal septum, and severe malformation of the face.

本研究の目的は, 分娩期ケアの質の評価を, ケアを受けた産婦側とケアの提供者である助産婦側から査定し, 両者の関係を明らかにすることである。質の保証モデルに基づき, 産婦が受けたケアの構造変数を医療介入, 過程変数をサポーティブケア (NSILQ) と日常生活援助, 結果変数を分娩期サービス満足度と出産満足度 (VAS) と外傷体験の各質問紙で測定した。また助産婦の提供したケアは, 構造変数を勤務経験年数, 過程変数をサポーティブケア (NSILQ) とモニタリングケア, 結果変数を仕事満足の各質問紙で測定した。さらに, 産婦と助産婦の双方の評価にかかわるケア提供システムの構造変数として病棟形態とケアの継続性を挙げた。分析の対象は, 8名以上の産婦と助産婦から回答が得られた17施設で, 産婦367名, 助産婦208名であった。その結果,(1) 産婦が認知したサポーティブケアと助産婦が認知したサポーティブケアとの間に相関関係があった。(2) 産婦が認知した日常生活援助と助産婦が認知したサポーティブケアとの間に相関関係があった。(3) 産婦の分娩期サービス満足度と助産婦のサポーティブケアとの間に相関関係があった。(4) 病棟形態と産婦の変数である医療介入, サポーティブケア, 日常生活援助, 分娩期サービス満足度, 出産満足度との間に関連があった。

A case of inner ear anomalies (Mondini dysplasia) associated with recurrent meningitis was found in a 5-year-old boy. The patient had 3 episodes of meningitis since he was 3 years old. During surgical treatment, we found cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage through a bony defect in the stapedial footplate. The inner ear was obliterated with small pieces of connective tissue and the oval window was sealed with auricular cartilaginous chips. He has remained free from recurrent meningitis during 7 months follow up.

この研究は, 看護領域の不妊症に関する文献を検索し, 不妊症の人びとの心理的問題を取り扱う研究の特徴を明らかにし, 今後の研究に必要な課題を検討することを目的とした。系統的文献検索を行い, 主題別分類と年次別推移の傾向をみた。さらに, 心理面に焦点を当てた9文献について, 研究の焦点, 対象, 方法の観点から分類し, 比較検討した。その結果, 心理に関する文献は1980年以降増加しており, 1990年からは患者の体験・意味, 対処を主題としたものの増加が著しいこと, 本邦の文献数は全体的に少ないことがわかった。そして, 9文献の詳細な検討から, 対象とその体験している現象は何かということに研究の焦点が当てられていること, 不妊夫婦または不妊の女性が研究の対象に選ばれていること, 調査研究または質的研究が研究の方法として用いられていることがわかった。今後の研究の課題として, 対象の範囲を広げることや現象に関与している要因および要因間の関係を分析あるいは検証する研究が必要であることが明らかになった。