Journal of Caring Sciences
Volume:1 Issue: 3, Sep 2012

Having children with chronic diseases such as asthma creates conditions that cause emotional and behavioral problems in parents. In most families, the mother tends to have the first role in caring for her child and therefore mothers endure greater psychological pressure than other family members. These mothers'' experiences and problems are different due to cultural and economic differences and the health services they receive. This study aimed to explore the experiences of mothers of an asthmatic child. In this qualitative study data was collected through unstructured, in-depth interviews with 10 mothers who had an asthmatic child. The Graneheim and Lundman''s qualitative content analysis method was used for analyzing the data. The analysis of data showed five main themes including constant concern, feeling of having an unusual life, the need for help from others, feeling of guilt, and the desire to constantly monitor the child. The mothers of asthmatic children expressed feelings and experiences that demonstrated their need for support and empathy. Therefore, in addition to the necessity of developing strategies to support these mothers, future studies aiming to reveal methods to provide them with support are also required.

Amniotic fluid is an important factor in the prediction of fetal survival. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effects of intravenous hydration of mothers on amniotic fluid volume and in turn on pregnancy outcomes. The current single blind controlled clinical trial was conducted on 20 pregnant mothers with amniotic fluid index of lower or equal to 5 cm and gestational age of 37-41 weeks. The subjects were divided into two groups of case and control through simple random sampling. Amniotic fluid index was measured in all participants. The case group received one liter of isotonic saline during 30 minutes by the bolus method. Reevaluations of amniotic fluid index in both groups were made 90 minutes after baseline measurement. Independent t-test and paired t-test were used to compare the two groups and mean amniotic fluid index before and after treatment, respectively. Hydration of mothers significantly increased the amniotic fluid index in the case group (mean change: 1.5 cm; 95%CI: 0.46 - 2.64; P = 0.01). The mean change of amniotic fluid index in the control group did not significantly increase (P = 0.06). The elevation of amniotic fluid index in the hydration group (32%) was significantly higher than the control group (1%) (P = 0.03). In this study intravenous hydration increased amniotic fluid index of mothers with term pregnancy and oligohydramnios. Since it caused no complications for the mother and the fetus, it can be used as an effective method in management of oligohydramnios.

Anxiety is a common disorder in patients before surgery. Inappropriately managed anxiety can cause psychological and physiological reactions and will affect the process of surgery and recovery. Therefore, this study examined the effects of hand massage on anxiety in patients undergoing ophthalmology surgery using local anesthesia. In this interventional study, 52 patients who were supposed to undergo ophthalmology surgery using local anesthesia were studied. Patients were randomly assigned to two groups of intervention, who received hand massage before surgery (n = 27) and control (n = 25). Massaging lasted for 5 minutes (2.5 minutes on each hand) before surgery. Stroking and scrubbing methods were performed by 2 trained researchers. Anxiety level, blood pressure, heart rate, and respiratory rate were measured before and after the intervention in both groups. Anxiety was evaluated using Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Data was analyzed by chi-square, independent samples t-test, and paired t-test. There were no significant differences in mean anxiety, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and respiratory rate between the two groups before the intervention (p > 0.05). However, there was a significant differenc in the mean stress level between the two groups after the intervention (p < 0.05). The two groups did not differ significantly in terms of physiological variables (p > 0.05). Our findings suggested that 5 minutes of hand massage before ophthalmology surgery (under local anesthesia) could reduce anxiety. Therefore, this method can be used to increase patient comfort and reduce anxiety before surgical interventions.

Sleep is one of the basic human needs and sleep deprivation causes nu-merous adverse effects on the human body and mind. Due to reduced sleep quality in patients with acute coronary syndrome, this study was carried out to determine the effect of eye mask on sleep quality in patients with acute coronary syndrome. In this two-group controlled clinical trial, sixty patients with acute coronary syndrome in the coronary care units of Baqiyatallah Hospital in Tehran in 2010 were selected by purposeful sampling method and randomly allocated to two groups of case and control. In the case group, in the second night stay, the intervention of eye mask was done per night and by using the Petersburg''s sleep quality index; sleep quality was evaluated during and at the end of hospitalization. Then data were analyzed by paired t-test, independent t-test, Spearman and Pearson''s correlation coefficient and SPSS software version 19. Total sleep quality score of the case group was significantly decreased after intervention (4.86 ± 1.88) from before intervention (10.46 ± 4.09) (p < 0.000). In addi-tion, total score of sleep quality after intervention in the case group (4.86 ± 1.88) was significant different from the control group (8.43 ± 1.97) (p < 0.005). Using eye mask, as an economical and uncomplicated method, can improve sleep quality in patients with acute coronary syndrome in the coronary care units and can be used as an alternative method of treatment instead of drug therapy.

Down syndrome is one of the most prevalent genetic diseases. Screening methods for this syndrome are easy and safe and are recommended to all pregnant women particularly mothers over 35 years of age. This study aimed to review the status of Down syndrome screening and related factors in Iranian pregnant women. This descriptive analytical study was carried out in 2011. It included 400 women who were randomly selected from those referring to Alzahra Hospital (Tabriz, Iran) during their third trimester of pregnancy. Data was collected through a question-naire whose reliability and validity have been approved. The data was analyzed by chi-square test in SPSS13. The results showed that while 28 and 26 women imple-mented screening tests during the first and second trimesters, respectively, only 5 sub-jects benefited from both (integrated test). Chi-square test showed significant correla-tions between the implementation of screening methods and age, education level, in-come, and the location of prenatal care (p < 0.05). The findings of the present study showed women to poorly implement Down syndrome screening methods. Therefore, the necessity of providing appropriate educational programs for health staff and mothers seems undeniable. Moreover, paying attention to the related factors such as income, educational level, and adequate training of mothers during pregnancy is essential.

The prevalence of obesity is increasing in both developed and developing nations. Body mass index (BMI) is the most common index for obesity assessment and its relation with most complications among non-pregnant and pregnant women is known. However, no study has evaluated the relation between abdominal obesity and macrosomia among pregnant women. In this prospective study, anthropometric indices including weight, height, and waist circumference (WC) of 1140 nulliparous pregnant women during their first trimester of pregnancy (6th-10th weeks) were measured by the researcher. According to the classification of the World Health Organization, women with BMI > 25 kg/m2 were considered as overweight or obese. Abdominal obesity was defined as WC ≥ 88 cm. Finally, mothers were followed up and fetal macrosomia was recorded in a checklist. Data was analyzed in SPSS15.The results showed that 77.5% of women aged 20-35 years and 92.7% were housewives. The mean (SD) values of BMI and WC were 24.32 (4.08) kg/m2 and 81.84 (9.25) cm, respectively. The prevalence of overweight (BMI = 25-29.9 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI > 29.9 kg/m2) was 27.6% and 8.8%, respectively. Abdominal obesity based on WC was found in 34.8% of the subjects. Findings of this study revealed obesity in over one third of nulliparous pregnant women during their first trimester. Moreover, the high prevalence of macrosomia, in these women confirmed the importance of maternal education about obesity-related complications in order to change their lifestyle and prevent obesity.

The present study aimed to determine health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and its predictive factors among infertile women. This cross-sectional study was conducted on infertile women referring to Majidi Infertility Center (Tabriz, Iran). The data was collected through self-administered questionnaires including clinical and demographic characteristics and the Persian version of 36-item short form health survey (SF-36). One-sample t-test, independent t-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and logistic regression were used for data analysis. Overall, 1012 infertile women were studied. The quality of life scores of infertile women in all eight subscales were significantly lower than normative data for Iranian women. Low physical component summary was more frequent in younger [adjusted odds ratio (AOR):1.45; 95% CI: 1.07-1.96], less educated (AOR: 1.75; 95% CI: 1.27-2.41), and low income (AOR: 1.52; 95% CI: 1.06-2.16) participants. It was less frequent in individuals whose infertility duration was 3-9 years (AOR: 0.65; 95% CI: 0.48-0.86), had male (AOR: 0.58; 95% CI: 0.43-0.78) or female and male factors infertility (AOR: 0.48; 95% CI: 0.30-0.78), or had a history of 1-2 in vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination (IUI), or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Low mental component summary was associated with low income (AOR: 1.56; 95% CI: 1.11-2.18) and unexplained cause of infertility (AOR: 0.52; 95% CI: 0.32-0.56). The findings of this study indicated low quality of life among infertile women. The findings suggested the need for providing this group, especially those at higher risk such as low educated or low income females, with necessary support.

Perineal pain is the most common complaint after episiotomy. It imposes extra pressure on mothers who attempt to adapt to their new conditions. Therefore, the present study was performed to compare pain severity and perineal repair in two episiotomy repair methods. In this clinical trial, 100 primiparous women who referred to hospitals of Tabriz (Iran) for delivery were randomly allocated into two groups of 50 to undergo either continuous or interrupted episiotomy repair. A visual analogue scale (VAS) was used to evaluate pain severity 12-18 hours after episiotomy repair and also 10 days after delivery. Perineal repair rate was also assessed using the REEDA (redness, edema, ecchymosis, discharge, and approximation) scoring scale. The obtained data was analyzed in SPSS15. Statistical tests did not show significant differences between the 2 groups in pain severity variations or REEDA scores at 12-18 hours and the 10th day after delivery. However, the mean required time for repair and the number of used threads were significantly lower in the continuous repair group (p < 0.001). The results of this study showed that pain severity and episiotomy repair rate were similar in the two methods. Nevertheless, shorter time of repair and fewer threads were required using the continuous repair method. Therefore, this method would provide better services for mothers and reduce the required time, energy, and costs.