Quality of Life and Mental Health in Iranian Transgender Women

Background: Mental health issues and quality of life are among the critical items of general health in individuals, especially transgender subjects. The present study aimed to assess the quality of life, depression, anxiety, and stress in transgender women and determine the factors contributing to them.Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed on 127 Iranian transgender women using a convenience sampling method from August 2019 to April 2020. The Quality of Life (QOL) was determined using the World Health Organization (WHO) Questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF). The DASS-21 questionnaire was employed to evaluate the subjects’ anxiety, depression, and stress.Results: In total, 48% of the individuals had a moderate QOL. The highest score was achieved in the physical health dimension and the lowest in social relationships. Depression, anxiety, and stress were severe and extremely severe in 22%, 20.4%, and 17.3% of the subjects, respectively. A significant relationship was observed between the overall perception of QOL and depression, anxiety, and stress (P<0.001).A significant positive association was observed between the subscales of QOL and education and favorable economic status among transgender women. Furthermore, a significant negative correlation existed between the subscales of QOL with age and sexual violence. Regarding mental health, education had a significant relationship with reduced stress and anxiety, and good economic status had a significant relationship with reduced depression. Still, sexual violence was associated with increased stress in individuals.Conclusion: The present study results emphasize that transgender women are at risk of mental health disorders, including depression, anxiety, and stress. These conditions are in close association with the quality of life in this population. Moreover, considering the high sexual violence in transgender women of the present study and its considerable effects on mental health disorders, there is a strong need to develop violence prevention services in the community and legal protections in this area. The culture of preventing violence against women in society should be emphasized, and education to families should be considered the first line of prevention

Menstrual Rights Programs and Policies for Childbearing-aged women and girls: A Systematic Review

Objectives: In order to increase the awareness of health service providers about the difficulties and consequences associated with the violation of menstrual rights, it is necessary to conduct a review study of existing programs in this area. This study aimed to review the menstrual rights programs and policies for reproductive-aged women and girls. Methods: In this systematic review, we searched international databases, including PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, and Web of Science, as well as Iranian ones, such as IranMedex, Magiran, MEDLINE, and Embase, for relevant studies without considering publication year. Finally, of 832 results, including articles, reports, and governmental documents, 27 studies were included in this review study. Results: "Menstrual rights" is not viewed as a major issue, even in the international vision programs. The results indicate that the programs in this field were mainly focused on four aspects: laws and policies, empowerment in menstruation management, normalization, and support for menstrual justice. Despite the increase in programs to achieve menstrual health, dealing with the legality of these programs has been completely marginalized. Conclusions: Since instructions and plans can play a vital role in implementing health policies, our findings emphasize the need for an evidence-driven plan to improve women and girls’ menstruation and reproductive health and rights that is consistent with long-term developmental goals. Attracting partnerships from the private sector, charities, and activists in this field can be very beneficial to achieving these goals

Neonatal Seizures in a Rural Iranian District Hospital: Etiologies, Incidence and Predicting Factors

Current study determined the overall incidence, common causes as well as main predictors of this final diagnosis among neonates admitted to a rural district hospital in Iran. This study was conducted on 699 neonates who were candidate for admission to the NICU. Study population was categorized in the case group, including patients exposed to final diagnosis of neonatal seizures and the control group without this diagnosis. Neonatal seizure was reported as final diagnosis in 25 (3.6%) of neonates. The most frequent discharge diagnosis in the seizure group was neonatal sepsis and in the non-seizure group was respiratory problems. No significant difference was found in early fatality rate between neonates with and without seizures (8.0% vs. 10.1%). Only gestational age <38 week had a relationship with the appearance of neonatal seizure. Low gestational age has a crucial role for predicting appearance of seizure in Iranian neonates

هنجارسازی کرامت‌محور: به کارگیری واژه «ماهینگی» برای توصیف بخش طبیعی و زیستی زندگی زنان

زمینه و هدف: به کاربردن واژگان غیر علمی، مبهم و اشتباه در توصیف چرخه باروری زنان در فرهنگ ایرانی امری رایج است. هدف مطالعه معرفی واژه ای است که از لحاظ آوایی، ساختاری و مفهومی شایسته توصیف با کرامت این بخش طبیعی از زندگی زنان، همراه با انگ زدایی می‌باشد که جزء حقوق باروری آنان محسوب می‌شود. روش: در این پژوهش تحلیلی به بررسی واژگانی که در ادبیات روزمره، پژوهشی و پزشکی برای چرخه‌های خونریزی زنان استفاده می‌شود و تأثیر این واژگان بر شکل‌گیری باورهای غلط در این زمینه پرداخته می‌شود. همچنین، مطالعه فلسفه جایگزینی واژه قاعدگی یا پریود با ماهینگی که برگرفته از ارتباط آن با ماه است، تبیین می‌شود. ملاحظات اخلاقی: در تمام مراحل نگارش پژوهش، صداقت و امانتداری رعایت شده است. یافته‌ها: واژگانی که برای توصیف ماهینگی در فرهنگ و زبان فارسی از آن استفاده می‌شود عمدتاً به معنای تکرار و تأکید بر قاعده یا رسم‌بودن دارد که بر عکس تأکیدی برای نیازهای سلامت باروری زنان در این دوران نیست. بعضی واژگان نیز یادآور ممنوعیت‌های فرهنگی یا اجتماعی و یا حتی معنای لغوی آن بارمنفی دارد. واژه «ماهینگی» موجب یکسان‌سازی توصیف چرخه زیستی زندگی زنان در ادبیات پژوهشی، پزشکی و اجتماعی شده، از لحاظ آوایی و ساختاری مناسب فرهنگ معاصر، از لحاظ معنای لغوی هنجارساز و کرامت‌محور برای حقوق سلامت باروری زنان می‌باشد. نتیجه‌گیری: به کارگیری واژه ماهینگی با استعاره‌ای از ماه به عنوان یک جرم آسمانی که تشابهات ساختاری متعددی در چرخه تکامل آن با تکامل تخمک وجود دارد و همچنین استفاده از ماه به عنوان نمادی از باروری می‌تواند توصیفی با کرامت از ماهینگی زنان باشد. علاوه بر این موارد، استفاده از این نمادسازی زیبا و باشکوه می‌تواند تسهیل‌گر شروع تعامل خانواده‌ها با فرزندانشان در این زمینه و آماده‌سازی آنان برای ازدواج و فرزندآوری باشد