Background:Postpartum depression (PPD) is a common problem after child's birth and may influence the quality of life (QOL). Investigation of postpartum QOL and depression can be useful for better care for mothers and improvement of their well-being.Objectives:The objective of this study was to assess the life quality in mothers with and without PPD.Patients and Methods:In a prospective study, women who had experienced child's birth with and without PPD were recruited in Kashan-Iran. PPD was measured using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and QOL was measured by SF-36 questionnaire. Data collection was conducted at two assessment points: second month (n = 321) and fourth month (n = 300) postpartum. Based on EPDS, a score of 13 or more was defined as PPD. Mean scores of SF-36 questionnaire were compared between women with and without PPD at two assessment points and within each group from the first to the second assessments. Moreover, correlation between scores of EPDS and scores of life quality dimensions were evaluated. Data were analyzed by using the Student’s t-test, Mann–Whitney U-test, ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis, Chi-square test, Pair t test, Wilcoxon, Pearson and Spearman Correlation Coefficient.Results:Differences in seven out of eight mean scores of QOL dimensions (except role-physical) between depressed and non-depressed women at the first and the second assessments were significant. Results of changes in mean scores of QOL dimensions from the first to the second assessments in each group showed that non-depressed women scored higher in all of eight dimensions with significant differences in two dimensions (bodily pain and role-emotional as well as mental health component). In depressed women, scores of life quality decreased in some of QOL dimensions but differences were not significant. There were significant negative correlations between EPDS scores and scores of seven out of eight SF-36 sub-scales (except role-physical) in addition to physical and mental health components at two assessments. The highest correlation was found between EPDS scores and emotional well-being and total scores of SF-36 dimension at the first and the second assessments (r = -o.489, r = -0.381), respectively.Conclusions:The findings demonstrated that postpartum depression leads to a lower life quality at second and fourth months postpartum. Integration of PPD screening into routine postnatal care is recommended.

Objectives This study aimed to assess happiness and its predictors among a group of Iranian hospital nurses. Methods This cross-sectional study was done in 2016 on 620 hospital nurses who worked in five teaching hospitals affiliated to Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran. Nurses were recruited through the census method. Data collection instruments were a researcher-made demographic and occupational characteristics questionnaire, the Oxford Happiness Inventory, and the Minnesota Job Satisfaction Questionnaire. Data analysis was done through stepwise multiple linear regression analysis. Results Among 620 recruited nurses, 422 returned their questionnaires completely filled. The mean of their happiness was 123.4 ± 18.4 in the possible score range of 29–174. The significant predictors of happiness were satisfaction with mental health, monthly salary, satisfaction with salary, quality of life, current hospital ward, the length of working in the current ward, work shift, age, job satisfaction, and satisfaction with physicians' conduct and performance. These variables explained 50.3% of the total variance of happiness. Satisfaction with mental health had the greatest proportion in explaining the variance of happiness. Conclusion Nurses in teaching hospitals in Kashan, Iran, have moderate happiness. Their happiness is affected by different factors, particularly by satisfaction with their mental health. Health policy-makers and authorities, in developing workforce-related plans and programs, need to pay special attention to nurses' happiness and its contributing factors.

ContextFamily, especially the mother, has the most important role in the education, transformation of information, and health behaviors of girls in order for them to have a healthy transition from the critical stage of puberty, but there are different views in this regard.ObjectivesConsidering the various findings about the source of information about puberty, a meta-analysis study was conducted to investigate the extent of the mother’s role in informing girls about puberty.Data SourcesThis meta-analysis study was based on English articles published from 2000 to February 2015 in the Scopus, PubMed, and Science direct databases and on Persian articles in the SID, Magiran, and Iran Medex databases with determined key words and their MeSH equivalent.Study SelectionQuantitative cross-sectional articles were extracted by two independent researchers and finally 46 articles were selected based on inclusion criteria. STROBE list were used for evaluation of studies.Data ExtractionThe percent of mothers as the current and preferred source of gaining information about the process of puberty, menarche, and menstruation from the perspective of adolescent girls was extracted from the articles. The results of studies were analyzed using meta-analysis (random effects model) and the studies’ heterogeneity was analyzed using the I2 calculation index. Variance between studies was analyzed using tau squared (Tau2) and review manager 5 software.ResultsThe results showed that, from the perspective of teenage girls in Iran and other countries, in 56% of cases, the mother was the current source of information about the process of puberty, menarche, and menstruation. The preferred source of information about the process of puberty, menarche, and menstruation was the mother in all studies at 60% (Iran 57%, and other countries 66%).ConclusionsAccording to the findings of this study, it is essential that health professionals and officials of the ministry of health train mothers about the time, trends, and factors affecting the start of puberty using a multi-dimensional approach that involves religious organizations, community groups, and peer groups.

Death anxiety can negatively affect recovery among older patients. Objective: study aimed to assess death anxiety and its predictors among older adults during and after hospitalization. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2017 on 241 hospitalized patients aged ≥60 years. The study subjects were consecutively recruited from a hospital in Kashan City, Iran. The required data were collected in the first and the third hospitalization days (T1 and T2) and the seventh day after hospital discharge (T3) using the Mini-Mental State Examination, a Death Anxiety Contributing Factors questionnaire, the Templer Death Anxiety Scale, the Life Satisfaction Index-Z Scale, and the Spiritual Well-Being Scale. For the statistical evaluation, repeated measures Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), the stepwise multiple linear regression, and the rank regression analyses were used. Results: The Mean±SD score of death anxiety at T1-T3 was 6.74±3.81, 7.38±3.64, and 6.18±3.60, respectively. Death anxiety at T2 was significantly greater than T1 and T3 (P=0.0001). Approximately 17.7% of the total variance of death anxiety at T1 was explained by the number of hospitalizations, satisfaction with hospital staff's performance, and spiritual well-being. The significant predictors of death anxiety at T2 were marital status, satisfaction with hospital staff's performance, children's gender, satisfaction with bed arrangement, age, and the number of hospitalizations, which explained 32.1% of the total variance. Moreover, 15.4% of the variance at T3 was explained by satisfaction with bed arrangement and receiving education at hospital discharge. Conclusion: Older adults suffer from moderate death anxiety during and after their hospitalization due to various factors. Managing death anxiety contributing factors is necessary to alleviate it among older adults.