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Background: More than half of the population of women suffer from cyclic mastalgia which can interfere with women's sexual function and affect their sexual satisfaction. The current study was conducted to determine the effect of sexual counseling on sexual satisfaction in women with cyclic mastalgia. Materials and Methods: This randomized controlled trial study was performed on 81 women with cyclic mastalgia. The subjects were randomly divided into two groups of intervention (n = 40) and control (n = 41). Intervention was performed as Permission, Limited information, Specific suggestions, Intensive therapy (PLISSIT) sex counseling in four sessions for a maximum of 90 min in the intervention group. The demographic checklist and Index of Sexual Satisfaction (ISS) were used for data collection. Follow-up was performed 1 and 3 months after the intervention. The obtained data were analyzed using repeated-measures test. Results: The intervention and control groups were in good balance in terms of demographic characteristics and sexual satisfaction scores prior to the intervention and no statistically significant differences were observed. There was a statistically significant increase in the mean (SD) score of female sexual satisfaction in the intervention group: 93 (12.52), 101.15 (7.70),101.37 (5.31), (F(1,39) = 27.4, p < 0.001). We also observed a decrease in the mean (SD) score of sexual satisfaction in the control group: 93.39 (13.12), 90.68 (8.41), 90.85 (6.57), (F(1,40) = 11.9, p < 0.001) 1 and 3 months following the intervention. Conclusions: This study revealed that individual counseling by PLISSIT sex counseling could lead to improvement in sexual satisfaction index in women with cyclic breast pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Patients awaiting surgery typically experience significant physical and psychological stress. Vital signs and serum cortisol level are altered in response to anxiety. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of preoperative education on physiological indices and cortisol level of female patients undergoing elective surgeries. Materials and Methods: In this single-blinded randomized controlled trial, 60 women undergoing gynecological elective surgeries in Kowsar Hospital (Qazvin, Iran) were randomly assigned to either control or intervention group. The patients of the intervention group were assessed based on the nursing process after admission. Subjects with anxiety, inadequate awareness, and fear received necessary training on anxiety reduction techniques. The control group merely received routine care. A questionnaire including demographic characteristics, baseline and preoperative vital signs, and serum cortisol level was completed for all subjects. Data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics (Fisher's exact test, paired and independent t-tests, and Mann-Whitney U test) in SPSS17. P values less than 0.05 were considered significant. Results: The two groups were homogeneous in terms of age (P = 0.20), marital status (P = 0.50), education (P = 0.10), employment status (P = 0.13), and admission history (P = 0.30). There were no significant differences in baseline vital signs between the intervention and control groups. Before surgery, the mean values of vital signs increased in both the groups. However, the increments were less in the experimental group than in the control group. Serum cortisol levels were also lower in the experimental group compared to the control group (P < 0.01). Conclusions: Education based on the nursing process is a non-pharmaceutical and effective method to minimize changes in vital signs and decrease serum cortisol level in patients undergoing gynecological elective surgeries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lactation has a negative effect on female sexual function. Hormonal changes during lactation cause changes which might lead to dyspareunia, lack of libido, and anorgasmia. There are various pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches to treat sexual dysfunction. While pharmacological treatment has multiple unwanted side effects, non-pharmacological therapies such as complementary medicine are a potential safer alternative. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of ear acupressure on sexual function of lactating women.Methods/design: This is a randomized clinical trial with a parallel sham control group. In this study, 76 lactating women between 6 months and 1 year after childbirth were referred to health care centers in Qazvin City and would be invited to participate. Participants will be divided into intervention (n = 38) and control (n = 38) groups using simple block randomization. Both intervention and sham control groups will be visited over 10 sessions within a 4-day interval. At each visit, the adhesives containing Vaccaria seed will be adhered for the intervention group, while non-latex-based adhesives with no Vaccaria seeds will be placed on the same ear acupoints for the sham control group. Selected ear acupoints include genitalia (two ear points), pelvic point, master shoulder, and posterior pituitary gland. The women will be asked to hold the seeds on their ears for 3 days and press each ear point three times a day for 20 s. After 3 days, they will be asked to remove the seeds from their ears and rest for 1 day. Sexual function as primary outcome in both groups will be assessed using the Female Sexual Function Index before and immediately after 1 and 2 months after the intervention. Also, Sexual Quality of Life as secondary outcome will be assessed using Sexual Quality of Life-Female (SQOL-F) before and 2 months after intervention. Data will be analyzed using repeated measure ANOVA at the significant level of 0.05.Discussion: This study is expected to support the impact of ear channel ear acupressure on sexual function in lactating women.Trial Registration: Iranian Clinical Trial Registration Center IRCT20190626044028N1 . Registered on 16 August 2019. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]