A Dyadic Approach to Infertility Stress, Marital Adjustment, and Depression on Quality of Life in Infertile Couples.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to examine the level of infertility stress, marital adjustment, depression, and quality of life in infertile couples and assess the actor and partner effects in these areas using the actor-partner interdependence model. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHOD: Participants were 121 infertile couples. After pilot study, data were collected from November 2012 to March 2013 using the following questionnaires: the Fertility Quality of Life, Fertility Problem Inventory, Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale, and Beck Depression Inventory. FINDINGS: There was a gender difference in infertility stress, depression, and quality of life. Infertility stress had actor and partner effects on the quality of life. Marital adjustment had an actor effect on the quality of life for the wives. Depression had actor and partner effects on quality of life for the wives, but only an actor effect for the husbands. CONCLUSION: This study found that there were actor and partner effects of infertility stress, marital adjustment, and depression on the quality of life in infertile couples. These findings may help nurses be aware of such effects and can be used as a baseline data in the development of nursing interventions for infertile couples.

Effectiveness of Ginger Essential Oil on Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting in Abdominal Surgery Patients.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of aromatherapy with ginger essential oil on nausea and vomiting in abdominal surgery patients. METHOD: This was a quasi-experimental study with a nonequivalent control group and repeated measures. The experimental group (n = 30) received ginger essential oil inhalation. The placebo control group (n = 30) received normal saline inhalation. The level of postoperative nausea and vomiting was measured using a Korean version of the Index of Nausea, Vomiting, and Retching (INVR) at baseline and at 6, 12, and 24 h after aromatherapy administration. The data were collected from July 23 to August 22, 2012. RESULTS: Nausea and vomiting scores were significantly lower in the experimental group with ginger essential oil inhalation than those in the placebo control group with normal saline. In the experimental group, the nausea and vomiting scores decreased considerably in the first 6 h after inhaled aromatherapy with ginger essential oil. CONCLUSION: Findings indicate that ginger essential oil inhalation has implications for alleviating postoperative nausea and vomiting in abdominal surgery patients.

Patterns and Factors associated with Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use among Korean Postpartum Women.

PURPOSE: This study was conducted to identify the pattern and factors associated with women's use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) during postpartum in Korea. METHODS: With a descriptive survey design, data of 423 postpartum women were collected via online and offline surveys. RESULTS: A total of 251 women (59.3%) reported CAM use during postpartum. Eating animal-based foods (65.3%), plant-based health foods (52.2%), and using oriental medicine (31.8%) were commonly used in postpartum women. The reason for using CAM were physical recovery (39.1%), breastfeeding (29.7%), weight loss (24.8%), prevention of postpartum complications (5.1%), and others (1.3%). People who recommended CAM use was mainly family (41.3%), and expense of using CAM was 751,188 Korea won. Most women discussed CAM use with doctor (44.9%), and 29.3% of women didn't even consult CAM use with health care providers. Most of (72.3%) women were satisfied with CAM use. Higher level of education and monthly income, being employed, primipara, normal range of gestational weight gain, no abortion experience, and no maternal complication were significantly associated with CAM use in postpartum women. CONCLUSION: Results of this study were somewhat different from those of western research. Findings offer baseline data of CAM use in postpartum women, and health care providers need to understand it when they care for them.

Effects of Laughter Therapy on Immune Responses in Postpartum Women.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of laughter therapy on secretory IgA (sIgA) in postpartum women. METHODS: The study used a nonequivalent control group with nonsynchronized design. The participants were 76 postpartum women who agreed to participate in this study and were selected by convenience sampling (experimental group, n = 38; control group, n = 38). The data were collected from December 15, 2009, to April 8, 2010. The experimental group participated in a postpartum laughter program from a laughter therapy expert for 60 minutes per session, twice a week for 2 weeks, for a total of four sessions. To evaluate the effects of the postpartum laughter program, sIgA levels in breast milk were measured. The data were analyzed using SPSS WIN 20.0 software. RESULTS: Immune response (sIgA) significantly differed between the experimental and control groups. CONCLUSION: A postpartum laughter program can be applied as a complementary and alternative intervention to postpartum women in a transitional mother-infant care center.

From burden to spritual growth: Korean students' experience in a spiritual care practicum.

Little is known about how students learn spiritual caregiving. A phenomenological study was conducted to examine the experience of Korean nursing students in a spiritual care practicum. Interviews with 12 students were analyzed and organized into 40 themes, 17 theme clusters, and five categories describing their experience in the practicum. Students initially experienced burdens and helplessness,followed by improvement of coping skills, self-reflection, and spiritual growth.

[Effects of laughter therapy on postpartum fatigue and stress responses of postpartum women].

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of laughter therapy on postpartum fatigue and stress responses of postpartum women. METHODS: The research design was a nonequivalent control group non-synchronized design. The participants were 67 postpartum women who agreed to participate in this study, selected by convenience sampling: (experiment group-33 and control group-34). The data were collected from August 5 to September 30, 2010. The experimental group received laughter therapy from a laughter therapy expert for 60 min, twice a week for 2 weeks, a total of 4 sessions. To evaluate the effects of laughter therapy, postpartum fatigue by self-report questionnaire and cortisol concentration in breast milk were measured. The data were analyzed using the SPSS WIN 13.0 Program. RESULTS: The first hypothesis that "the degree of postpartum fatigue in the experimental group participating in laughter therapy would be lower than that of the control group" was accepted. These findings indicate that laughter therapy has a positive effect on decreasing postpartum fatigue. CONCLUSION: The finding provides evidence for use of complementary and alternative nursing in Sanhujori facilities and obstetric units to reduce postpartum women's fatigue.

Music Therapy on Anxiety, Stress and Maternal-fetal Attachment in Pregnant Women During Transvaginal Ultrasound.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of music therapy on anxiety, stress and maternal-fetal attachment in pregnant women during a transvaginal ultrasound. METHODS: This study was a nonequivalent control group nonsynchronized design. Pregnant women (n =232) were assigned to experimental (n= 117) and control (n =116) groups respectively. The data were collected from August 2 to 27, 2010. The experimental group received general prenatal care and single 30-minute session of music therapy, while the control group received only general prenatal care. Anxiety, stress, and maternal-fetal attachment was assessed using three self-report measures by State scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (1976), Pregnant women's stress scale of Ahn (1984) and Cranley's (1981) maternal-fetal attachment scale. RESULTS: The music therapy group showed statistically significant decrease in anxiety compared to control group but no significant difference was identified in stress and maternal-fetal attachment. CONCLUSIONS: The finding provides evidence for use of nursing intervention in prenatal care unit to reduce pregnant women's anxiety. Further research is necessary to test the benefits of music therapy with different frequency and duration.

[Effects of Koryo Hand Therapy on menopausal symptoms and FSH, LH, and estradiol in climacteric women].

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of Koryo Hand Therapy (KHT) on menopausal symptoms and hormone levels (Follicle Stimulating Hormone [FSH], Luteinizing Hormone [LH], and estradiol [E(2)]) in climacteric women. METHODS: The research design was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. Data were collected from November 28, 2005 to February 28, 2006. The 45 participants were assigned to either the experimental group (23) or control group (22). KHT was applied three times a week, for a total of 8 weeks to the women in the experimental group. RESULTS: There was a statistically significant decrease in menopausal symptoms (F=42.49, p=.000), FSH level (F=26.98, p=.000) and LH level (F=5.31, p=.026) between the experimental and control groups. There was an increase of the estradiol level in the experimental group but the difference between the two groups was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: KHT can be applied as a supportive nursing intervention to climacteric women. KHT is expected to be a complementary alternative intervention for health management of the climacteric women.

Effect of Nei-Guan point (P6) acupressure on ketonuria levels, nausea and vomiting in women with hyperemesis gravidarum.

AIM: This paper is a report of a study to examine the effect of Nei-Guan point acupressure on nausea, vomiting and ketonuria levels in women diagnosed with hyperemesis gravidarum. BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that acupressure application on the Nei-Guan point is effective in relieving nausea and vomiting associated with pregnancy and surgery. However, no findings have been supported by physiological data. METHOD: A randomized control group pretest-post-test design was implemented from 1 April 2003 to 30 April 2004 using three groups: a Nei-Guan point acupressure group, a placebo group and a control group which received only conventional intravenous treatment. The participants were 66 women admitted to two general hospitals in Korea with hyperemesis gravidarum. RESULTS: The degree of nausea and vomiting was statistically significantly lower in the Nei-Guan point acupressure group in comparison with the placebo and control groups. Ketonuria levels were reduced over time and, on days three and four of hospitalization, levels in the treatment group were statistically significantly lower than in the placebo or control groups (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Nei-Guan point acupressure is a useful treatment for relieving symptoms experienced by women with hyperemesis gravidarum.

[The effect of P6 acupressure for symptom control in pregnant women having hyperemesis gravidarum].

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of Nei-Guan(P6) acupressure on nausea and vomiting in pregnant women having hyperemesis gravidarum. METHOD: The research design was a randomized control-group pretest-posttest repeated measure design with counter balancing. For the experimental treatment, P6 acupressure was carried out for ten minutes. Data was collected from April 1, 2003 to April 30, 2004. The participants were 66 patients admitted with hyperemesis gravidarum. They were divided into three groups, a P6 acupressure group, placebo point group and a control group. RESULT: Hyperemesis gravidarum patients who received P6 acupressure during admission experienced much less nausea and vomiting than the placebo acupressure and control group (F=8.259, p=.001). CONCLUSION: Nei-Guan(P6) acupressure is considered an effective intervention for reducing nausea and vomiting in pregnant women having hyperemesis gravidarum. Further more Nei-Guan(P6) acupressure maybe used as an independent nursing intervention method for pregnant women with severe nausea and vomiting.

Effect of Puerariae radix on c-Fos expression in hippocampus of alcohol-intoxicated juvenile rats.

Alcohol consumption is known to cause substantial neuronal loss in several regions of the brain. In Oriental medicine, medications based on Puerariae radix have been known to be of efficacy in the treatment of alcohol-related problems. In the present study, the effect of the aqueous extract of Puerariae radix on the expression of c-Fos, an immediate early gene whose expression is sometimes used as a marker for stimulus-induced changes in the metabolic activity of neurons, in the hippocampus of acutely alcohol-intoxicated juvenile rats was investigated via immunohistochemistry. In the first part of the experiment, Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into six groups: the control group, the alcohol-treated group, the alcohol- and 0.3 mg/kg Puerariae radix-treated group, the alcohol- and 3 mg/kg Puerariae radix-treated group, the alcohol- and 30 mg/kg Puerariae radix-treated group, and the alcohol- and 300 mg/kg Puerariae radix-treated group. In the second part of the experiment, animals were divided into four groups: the control group, the 30 mg/kg Puerariae radix-treated group, the alcohol-treated group, and the alcohol- and 30 mg/kg Puerariae radix-treated group. From the results, it was demonstrated that alcohol administration significantly decreases the number of Fos-positive cells in the various regions of the hippocampus, and Puerariae radix treatment inhibits the alcohol-induced suppression of the expression of Fos in the hippocampus in a dose-dependent manner. Puerariae radix exerted no significant effect on Fos expression in the hippocampus of normal rats. The results presented in this study suggest that Puerariae radix may alleviate alcohol-induced disruption of hippocampal functions.