Caspian Journal of Reproductive Medicine
Volume:8 Issue: 1, Winter-Spring 2022

Even though pregnant women commonly experience poor sleep quality during pregnancy, the role of sleep quality in psychological problems is still unclear. This study was carried out to determine the association between poor sleep quality in the third trimester of pregnancy and the psychological distress among Iranian primiparous women.

This cross-sectional study was carried out on 300 primiparous women who attended prenatal care centers in Babol, Iran, in 2019.  The sleep quality and the psychological status of the pregnant women were measured with Pittsburg sleep quality index (PSQI) and Symptom CheckList-90 (SCL-90), respectively. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to examine the association(s) between independent, dependent, and control confounding variables.

Poor sleep quality was found in 74% of the participants. Poor sleep quality was not associated with psychological distress (the total score of SCL-90-R). Compared with women with good sleep quality, women with poor sleep quality were more likely to have hostility (adjusted OR = 2.51; CI = 1.13, 5.55), somatization (adjusted OR = 4.31; CI = 1.96, 9.47), and less paranoid (adjusted OR = 0.22; CI = 0.11, 0.44) during the third trimester of pregnancy.

It is suggested that poor sleep quality was significantly associated with subscales of SCL-90 (hostility and somatization, paranoid) during the third trimester. Thus, further research on the topic is needed.

Stillbirth is associated with a wide range of factors. The aim of study was to assay the prevalence of still birth at 28th week of gestation or later. In addition, it strove to identify the factors associated with stillbirth among women in Eastern Ethiopia in 2021.

The design of the study was cross-sectional, and it was conducted at a public hospital, Harar, in Ethiopia, from March 10 to May 10, 2021. A census sampling method was used to select 336 participants for the study. Information on socio-demographic status, maternal health, pregnancy, labor, and birth outcome was collected through a structured checklist. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were used to identify factors associated with still birth.

In this study, the prevalence of stillbirth was 12.6%. In bivariate analysis, mother age, place of residence, premature rupture of membranes, antepartum hemorrhage, gestational age, hypertensive disorder, congenital anomaly, partograph use during pregnancy, and the previous history of still birth among mothers were significantly associated with stillbirth. After adjusting confounder variables, significant factors associated with stillbirth were: high maternal age, rural residential areas, the use of partograph during labor and the previous history of still birth.

This finding of this study indicated that the high prevalence of stillbirth is a big health care concern in Hara, Eastern Ethiopia. Therefore, it is necessary to focus on further in order to identify and mitigate issues related to advanced maternal age, rural residents, the previous history of stillbirth, and partograph plotting in labor factors.

The management options for early pregnancy loss are different. There is very little local data available on the risks and benefits of MVA and D&C in the management of early pregnancy failure. The aim of the study was to compare manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) with dilatation and curettage (D&C) in the first trimester spontaneous abortion.

This study was conducted with antenatal patients with the gestational age of ≤ 12 weeks, who were diagnosed to have experienced inevitable, missed or incomplete abortion. Eligible patients were randomly divided into two groups (MVA group and D&C group) of 100 patients each. In the MVA group, vacuum was created in 60 ml double valve MVA syringe. In the D&C group, the cervix was dilated and evacuated the products of conception with ovum forceps. After evacuation, all the walls were curetted with sharp metal curette to complete the procedure.

The duration of the procedure and hospitalization was significantly lower for the MVA group compared to the D&C group (p< 0.001). The procedure related to uterine perforation/ cervical injury was significantly higher in D&C group compared with that of the MVA group (12% vs 3%) (P=0.016). In the D&C group, the moderate/ sever blood loss was significantly higher than that of the MVA group (70% vas 44%) (P < 0.001). There was a statistically significant difference in pain level post procedure between the two groups (P < 0.001). The cases of incomplete evacuation for both groups were similar, 3% in MVA and D&C groups.

We concluded that MVA is safe, effective, less time consuming, and requires shorter hospital stay. Complications such as uterine perforation, bleeding, cervical injury, and pain during the procedure are much less with MVA as compared to D&C.

Sexual function problems are associated with fertility in reproductive-aged married women. The present study aimed to determine the status of married women’s sexual function and also strove to elucidate the association between both spirituality and demographic factors with sexual function.

This descriptive, analytical study was performed on 120 married women, referring to two active health centers from Nov 2021 to Feb 2022 in Amol, Iran.  Women's sexual function was measured using Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWB) was also used to evaluate women’s Spirituality. The obtained data were analyzed by Pearson correlation (r) and linear regression analysis.

The mean values for female sexual function and spiritual health score were 25.7 ± 4.6, and 97.9 ±14.0, respectively. Spiritual health positively correlated with sexual function (rho=0.35, P<0.001). Also, spiritual health dimensions including religious well-being (rho=0.20, P<0.028) and existential well-being (rho=0.38, P<0.001) positively correlated with the sexual function of married women. There was a significant and positive correlation between religious well-being and some sexual function dimensions, including sexual arousal (rho=0.22, P<0.017), sexual orgasm (rho=0.20, P<0.027), and sexual pain (rho=0.20, P<0.026). Also, 12%, 4%, and 14% of sexual function of married women can be explained based on spiritual health, religious well-being and existential well-being, respectively. In addition, religious well-being did not have a significant association with sexual desire, sexual lubricant, and sexual satisfaction.

Spiritualty can lead to increased sexual health. Accordingly, spiritual lifestyle may help prevent sexual function problems and their negative effects on couples.