Effect of sexual enrichment program on the sexual satisfaction of pregnant women in Iran: A randomized clinical trial

Background: To improve the sexual satisfaction of pregnant women, there needs to be a culturally appropriate sex education program. This study aimed at determining the effectiveness of a sexual enrichment program on the sexual satisfaction of pregnant women. Methods: This single-blind randomized clinical trial was conducted on 61 pregnant women aged 18 to 35 years old with low-risk pregnancies and gestational ages of 14 to 32 weeks, who had referred to three healthcare centers in Mashhad. The participants were randomly assigned to two groups of control (n = 31) and intervention (n = 30) based on a table of blocks of four. The intervention group, in addition to receiving routine pregnancy training, participated in six one-hour sessions of a sexual enrichment program held on a weekly basis, while the control group received only the routine pregnancy healthcare. Larson's sexual satisfaction questionnaire was used to assess the sexual satisfaction of pregnant women prior to the study and two weeks after the intervention. Comparison of mean scores between and within the two groups was performed using SPSS software (version 21) using independent and paired t-tests. Results: After the intervention, there was a significant difference between the mean sexual satisfaction scores of the two groups (p = 0.02). Comparison of the differences between the mean sexual satisfaction scores of the intervention group before and after the intervention indicated a significant change (p = 0.009), while in case of the control group this change was not significant (p = 0.46). Conclusion: A sexual enrichment program can be effective in improving the sexual satisfaction of pregnant mothers. Keywords: Sexual satisfaction, Pregnant women, Sexual enrichment program, Clinical tria