نشریه پرستاری ایران
پیاپی 144 (آبان 1402)

The abstract is often the first text that people read before starting to read the entire article. Therefore, a great effort and attention should be paid in writing it. Since summarizing an article in a few sentences is difficult and requires professional skills, we aimed to address the importance and impact of an abstract and its function and types, and provide a practical guide to writing an effective and accessible scientific abstract.

Suicide and suicidal thoughts among adolescents have become a worrying psychosocial problem. This study aims to evaluate suicidal ideation among adolescents from the west of Tehran, Iran.

In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 256 boys and girls were selected from second-grade high schools in the west of Tehran by a convenience sampling method in 2022. The data collection tools were a sociodemographic form and the Beck scale for suicidal ideation (BSSI), which were completed using a self-report method. The collected data were analyzed in SPSS software, version 16 using descriptive and inferential statistics (independent t-test, analysis of variance).

The mean age of the participants was 17.33±0.67 years. The mean score of BSSI was 3.19±5.66 out of 5. Among the sociodemographic factors, suicidal ideation had a statistically significant relationship only with the grade point average (P=0.004).

It is recommended to design and implement programs to educate and provide psychiatric services to high school students in Iran to reduce their suicidal ideation.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a debilitating respiratory disease and one of the main causes of death and disability in the world. Respiratory support treatments are among the methods for the recovery of these patients. The present study aims to assess the effect of breathing exercises and chest physiotherapy on the fatigue of patients with COPD.

This is a quasi-experimental study on 45 patients COPD who were selected by convenience sampling method and randomly assigned to two experimental groups of breathing exercises (n=15) and chest physiotherapy (n=15) and one control group (n=15). Before and 6 weeks after the intervention, Krupp’s Fatigue Severity Scale was completed by the patient. Data analysis was done using paired t-test, one-way analysis of variance and chi-square in SPSS software, version 26. 

The mean scores of fatigue severity were significantly different in all groups between pretest and post-test phases (P<0.001). The fatigue severity in the intervention groups was reduced, while it increased in the control group, after intervention. There was no significant difference in fatigue severity among the three groups at baseline, but the difference was significant after the intervention (P<0.001). 

Considering the reduction in fatigue severity after two supportive treatments, it is recommended that breathing exercises and chest physiotherapy should be used along with drug treatments for patients with COPD to improve their respiratory conditions.

Due to the effects of COVID-9 , health care workers, including nurses, faced many psychological challenges, including death anxiety. This study aims to determine the death anxiety level of nurses working in the intensive care units (ICUs) for COVID-19 patients in hospitals affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2020.

This is a descriptive cross-sectional study that was conducted on 179 nurses working in the ICUs for COVID-19 patients in two hospitals located in Tehran and Qom cities. Continuous sampling method was used for their selection. Data collection was done using a demographic form and Templer's 15-item death anxiety scale. 

The mean death anxiety score of nurses was 8.74±2.007 out of 15, which is higher than the median score (i.e., 7.5). The results of one-way analysis of variance showed that the death anxiety score was significantly different between nurses only in terms of age (P=0.000). Tukey's post hoc test showed that the mean DAS score in nurses aged 30-39 was lower than in nurses aged ≥40 years and <30 years. There was no statistically significant difference in death anxiety between nurses in terms of other demographic factors (P>0.05). 

The nurses working in ICUs experienced a high level of death anxiety during the COVID-19 in Iran. It is necessary that the policy makers and educational, medical or hospital managers develop educational and interventional programs including online in-service programs or educational booklets to help nurses overcome the COVID-19-related conditions.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccination is necessary for pregnant or lactating women which can prevent them from infection to severe case of disease. The present study aims to determine the factors related to the acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination among pregnant or lactating women in Zahedan, Iran using the health belief model (HBM).

This is a cross-sectional study. Participants were 260 pregnant or lactating women referred to comprehensive health service centers in Zahedan city in 2022. Sampling method was done as a convenience sampling method. Data collection was done using a demographic form and a HBM-based questionnaire. The reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed based on Cronbach’s alpha value of 0.7. Moreover, the content validity index value was 0.81 and the content validity ratio was 0.77. The data were analyzed using non-parametric Wilcoxon test, Mann-Whitney U test, Spearman correlation test, and regression analysis in SPSS software, version 22.

The results of the regression analysis showed that the demographic variables explained 12.6% of the variance in vaccine acceptance behavior, where only the effect of age and educational level was significant, (P<0.05). The BM constructs along with age and educational level predicted 26.3% of the variance in vaccine acceptance behavior, where only age, self-efficacy and perceived benefits had a significant effect (P<0.05). Overall, the mentioned variables predicted 38.9% of the variance in vaccine acceptance behavior.

The factors of young age, high educational level, and the HBM constructs of self-efficacy and perceived benefits can predict the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance behavior of pregnant or lactating women in the South East of Iran. These findings can help policymakers and health care providers to use this model in designing program for improving vaccination acceptance of these high-risk groups.

Evidence has shown that the inability to regulate and understand emotions causes various behavioral problems in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study aims to investigate the effect of an emotion labeling (EL)-based training on the behavioral disorders of children with ASD.

This is a quasi-experimental single-subject study ABA method. Five boys with high-functioning autism were purposefully included in the study after one week of sampling in 2022. For each child, the Let’s Face It software was used individually to recognize basic emotion expressions (6 types) in three sessions followed by teaching EL at 8 sessions for 4 weeks, two sessions per week. The data collection tool was a demographic form and the test of behavioral disorders of children with ASD. The collected data at five phases were analyzed in SPSS software, using descriptive statistics, and Friedman’s test.

According to the result of Friedman test, there was a significant difference between the first and third phases (P=0.037) and the third and fourth phases (P=0.019) of behavioral disorders measurement. The EL training significantly reduced the behavioral disorders of patients (P=0.030).

It seems that the EL-based training can reduce the behavioral disorders of children with ASD.

Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common type of congenital disorders in children, imposing a caregiving burden and psychological pressure on their families, consequently affecting their quality of life. Given that parents are the primary caregivers for these children, this study aims to investigate the interventions for improving the quality of life (QOL) for parents of children with CHD.

In this scoping review, conducted by the five-step methodology of Arksey and O’Malley and the PRISMA for scoping reviews checklist, a comprehensive search for relevant clinical trials was conducted in online databases, including SID, MagIran, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, without time restrictions using the keywords such as “Quality of Life”, “Congenital heart disease”, and “Parents” in English and Persian.

The initial search yielded 207 articles. After removing duplicates, 145 remained. Considering inclusion and exclusion criteria and after reading the titles and abstracts, 6 articles were finally selected for the review. The types of interventions included telehealth monitoring, face-t-face or online education and follow-up, and psychosocial interventions. The majority of the studies reported that the interventions were effective in improving the QOL for parents. Online education and follow-up using the messaging applications such as WhatsApp, or face-t-face educational sessions, were found to be effective in improving the QOL for parents. However, one study using psychosocial intervention and the other study using telehealth home monitoring along with education and follow-up using email, SMS, phone calls, or video conference, did not found an enhancement in parental QOL.

The review of previous studies indicates that, in designing interventions for improving the QOL for parents of CHD children, the use of educational materials and the inclusion of adaptive and coping strategies is essential. It is better to initiate psychosocial interventions before surgery. Overall, there is a lack of studies in this field, with the majority focusing on education and follow-up. Further studies are recommended to assess the effectiveness of new interventions in improving the QOL of the parents of CHD children, such as mindfulness-based treatments and other psychotherapies.

Despite the significant impact of immunosuppressive drugs on controlling and treating certain diseases, their continued use can predispose patients to infectious diseases such as COVID-19, leading to anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. This study aims to determine the levels of anxiety, depression, and PTSD symptoms in patients treated with immunosuppressive drug during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 330 individuals treated with immunosuppressive drug such as those with autoimmune diseases, cancer, and transplant recipients in Firoozgar and Rasoul-e-Akram hospitals in Tehran, Iran, from July to December 2022. They were selected using a continuous sampling method. The instruments were a demographic/disease-related questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). Data analysis was done in SPSS software, version 16 using descriptive (frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation) and inferential (Independent t-test, analysis of variance, and Pearson’s correlation test) statistics.

In this study, the mean age of participants was 51.35±12.95 years, and 148 (44.8%) were female. The majority of the patients had normal levels of anxiety and depression (91.2% and 92.1%, respectively). The mean total IES-R score was 27.71 out of 88. The anxiety and depression scores did not have a significant relationship with any demographic, disease-related, and COVID-related characteristics of the study participants, but a significant correlation between income level and total score of IES-R was observed (P=0.043). 

The individuals receiving immunosuppressive drugs in this study, despite being susceptible to COVID-19, had normal levels of anxiety and depression and obtained lower than average score in the IES-R. This finding can reduce the concerns about the mental health of these patients. Further studies using other questionnaires or a qualitative study on the expriences of these patients during the COVID-19 pandemic are recommended.