The effectiveness of “Women’s Postpartum Sexual Health Program (WPSHP)” on Iranian women’s postpartum sexual health: A randomized clinical trial

Abstract

In this study, we examined the effectiveness of Women’s Postpartum Sexual Health Program (WPSHP) on Iranian women’s sexual health in the postpartum period. A single-blinded randomized clinical trial was conducted in 2016 on 80 postnatal women in Iran. We used the Female Sexual Function Index, Sexual Quality of Life - Female questionnaire and Female Sexual Distress Scale. The intervention group received counseling based on WPSHP. After 28 weeks, the mean score of the Female Sexual Function Index and Female Sexual Quality of Life significantly increased in the WPSH group (p < 0.001, p < 0.001), while the mean score of the Female Sexual Distress significantly decreased in the WPSH group (p < 0.001). We concluded that Women’s Postpartum Sexual Health Program could promote postnatal women’s sexual function and female sexual quality of life and reduces female sexual distress in women suffering from sexual problems in the postpartum period.

Acknowledgments

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran (Ethical code: IR.MUMS.REC.1395.161) and registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials under the code IRCTID: IRCT2016062228575N.

Disclosure statement

There is no conflict of interest in this study.

Additional information

Funding

This project was funded under the project number 941778 by the Vice Chancellor for Research, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.