Investigating the validity and reliability of the GLFS-25 questionnaire by factor analysis in the elderly hospitalized at the intensive and cardiac care units.

Introduction: Geriatric Locomotive Function Scale-25 (GLFS-25) is a 25-item tool most commonly used to diagnose locomotive syndrome in the elderly. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the validity and reliability of the GLFS-25 questionnaire using factor analysis. Materials and methods: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 186 elderly people. The GLFS-25 questionnaire contains 25 items, and each item is scored on a five-point Likert scale from 0 to 4. Data were analyzed by SPSS V.19 software. Descriptive (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential (Cronbach's alpha, correlation coefficient, Bartlett test, KMO index, scree plot, and factor analysis) statistics were used to present the findings. Results: Factor analysis revealed two hidden factors in the four dimensions of the questionnaire (i.e., pain, daily activities, social relations, and mental health). The first factor, named mobility and its consequential concerns), with a variance percentage of 74.323, had an effect on questions No. 19, 11, 25, 16, 6, 24, 5, 4, and 3. The second factor, named the problems and risks associated with daily and social activities, with a variance percentage of 78.680, had an effect on questions No. 17, 22, 7, 18, 14, 20, 13, 9, 12, 8, 10, 21, 2, 15, 1, and 23. Cronbach's alpha coefficient among the questionnaire's dimensions was 78.4%. Conclusion: The GLFS-25 questionnaire can be used as a valid and reliable tool to diagnose locomotive syndrome in the elderly.

The effectiveness of cognitive training on improving cognitive function and sleep quality in community-dwelling elderly in Iran.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Given the ever-increasing of the older adults population and in order to achieve healthy and active ageing goals and improvement in the cognitive function and sleep quality in older adult, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of cognitive training program on improving cognitive function and ageing-related sleep quality in community-dwelling elderly in Iran, in 2018. METHODS: This was an experimental study. The sample comprised 420 older adults who were a member of the comprehensive health center in one of the southern cities of Iran. 164 had a cognitive problem and sleep disorder, of whom 108 were selected by the available method and based on inclusion criteria. Participants were randomly allocated to an experimental group (n=54) and a control group (n=54). Experimental group samples were undergoing the intervention for two months. Data were collected using MMSE questionnaire, Pittsburgh sleep quality, insomnia severity index and Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR). Data were collected one month before-and-after the intervention. Data were analyzed using SPSS software. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the mean score of cognitive function and sleep quality in both the intervention group and the control group before the intervention (p>0.05). At the post-test, the mean (SD) of elderly adults' cognitive function in the intervention and control groups were 2.7 (1.3) and 3.44 (1.7), respectively (p=0.017). Moreover, the mean (SD) of sleep quality in older adults in the intervention and the control group was 6.76 (2.3) and 9.25 (2.36), respectively (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Given the obtained results in the current study the cognitive training promotes cognitive function and sleep quality in older adults. Therefore, since this program is effective, low-cost and applicable, it can be used to improve cognitive function and sleep disorder in the older adult population.

Effect of a Nurse-Led Diabetes Self-Management Education Program on Glycosylated Hemoglobin among Adults with Type 2 Diabetes.

In recent years, great emphasis has been placed on the role of nonpharmacological self-management in the care of patients with diabetes. Studies have reported that nurses, compared to other healthcare professionals, are more likely to promote preventive healthcare seeking behaviors. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a nurse-led diabetes self-management education on glycosylated hemoglobin. A two-arm parallel-group randomized controlled trial with the blinded outcome assessors was designed. One hundred forty-two adults with type 2 diabetes were randomized to receive either usual diabetes care (control group) or usual care plus a nurse-led diabetes self-management education (intervention group). Duration of the intervention was 12 weeks. The primary outcome was glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c values). Secondary outcomes were changes in blood pressure, body weight, lipid profiles, self-efficacy (efficacy expectation and outcome expectation), self-management behaviors, quality of life, social support, and depression. Outcome measures were assessed at baseline and at 12-week and 24-week postrandomizations. Patients in the intervention group showed significant improvement in HbA1c, blood pressure, body weight, efficacy expectation, outcome expectation, and diabetes self-management behaviors. The beneficial effect of a nurse-led intervention continued to accrue beyond the end of the trial resulting in sustained improvements in clinical, lifestyle, and psychosocial outcomes. This trial is registered with IRCT2016062528627N1.

Validation of the Iranian/Persian Version of the Perceived Therapeutic Efficacy Scale for Type 2 Diabetes.

BACKGROUND: The theory if self-efficacy is the central concept of social cognitive theory with emphasis on the constructs of efficacy expectation, outcome expectation. Efficacy expectation is defined as the person's confidence to carry out a specific behavior. Outcome expectation is beliefs that carrying out a specific behavior will lead to a specific outcome. While the benefit of measuring outcome expectations has been established, there has been no large scale within the Iranian context. The purpose of this study is to examine the reliability-validity of the Persian version of the Perceived Therapeutic Efficacy Scale (PTES). METHODS: This study was conducted among 160 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) using a self-administered instrument measuring outcome expectation. We used a methodological study design to assess the validity and reliability of the translated Persian version of the instrument. RESULTS: The findings of the present study support the uni-dimensionality of the Persian version of the instrument. The 10 items of the scale account for 73.54% of the total variance and the un-rotated factor loadings ranged from 0.66 to 0.93. Moreover, this study offers support for convergent validity and internal consistency of the scale. CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrated good convergent validity, factor structure and internal consistency in a sample of 160 Iranian adults with T2DM. Therefore, the Persian version of the scale is a valid and reliable instrument and can be used in research and clinical settings.

Investigating the Influence of Teachers' Characteristics on the Teacher-Student Relations from Students' Perspective at Ilam University of Medical Sciences.

INTRODUCTION: Establishing an effective teacher-student relationship may affect the quality of learning. Such a complex human relationship may be influenced by various factors in addition to teacher and student. AIM: The present study aimed at investigating the influence of teacher characteristics on the Teacher-student relationship from students' perspective. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this descriptive-survey research, statistical population included 1500 students at Ilam University of Medical Sciences Ilam, Iran. Out of which 281 students were selected by simple random sampling, they received and completed series of questionnaires. Data was collected using a researcher-made questionnaire containing 37 Likert type items from which five items measured demographic profile of participants and 32 items measured impact of teacher's characteristics upon the teacher-student relationship. Data was analysed by SPSS software version 16 using descriptive statistics, t-test and One way ANOVA. RESULTS: The current study included 281 students (117 (41.6%) male, 164 (58.4%) female) studying at Ilam University of Medical Sciences. The effect of teachers' characteristics on the teacher-student relationship from the students' perspective in three areas (personal, professional and scientific) scored 4.37±0.54, 4.05±0.27, and 3.91±0.44, respectively. The highest score was related to "respect for students" (Mean=4.74, SD=0.55) and the lowest score was dedicated to 'gender' (Mean=2.40, SD= 0.64). Effect of other studied parameters was also higher than the average level. CONCLUSION: The findings indicated that teacher-student relationship and consequently the quality of education was overshadowed by the overall characteristics of teacher (namely-personal, professional and scientific). Notably, coupled with the professional and scientific properties of the teacher, his/ her communication skills may also help to provide a favourable learning condition for the students. Therefore, attention to the education of scientific as well as professional skills of the teachers in interaction with students through appropriate workshops and training courses is a matter of great necessity.

The Effect of Oxygen Inhalation Plus Oxytocin Compared with Oxytocin Only on Postpartum Haemorrhage: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

INTRODUCTION: Post Partum Haemorrhage (PPH) is the leading cause of maternal mortality across the world, mainly in the developing countries. AIM: The present study was conducted with the aim to investigate effect of oxygen inhalation plus oxytocin compared with oxytocin only on PPH. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was a clinical trial which was performed in Shahid Mustafa Khomieni Teaching Hospital of Ilam (western Iran) from April 2012 to Nov 2013. One hundred and twenty pregnant women who were referred to delivery ward for normal vaginal delivery were selected with convenience sampling method and they were randomly assigned into two groups. For both groups management of the third stage of labour was done using 1000CC Ringer and 20 units of Oxytocin. In the intervention group, in addition to the routine administration, 8 liters of oxygen via face mask was used continuously until 2 hours after delivery. Blood loss was determined by regular weighing of the buttocks that were previously weighted. The difference was calculated before and after weighing (1 gram increasing of weight was considered to be equivalent to 1CC blood loss). Data were analysed by SPSS 16 version using Student- t and Chi-square tests. RESULTS: The two groups were homogenous in regard to all the base line variables. The study results indicated that the mean of blood loss were (256.16±97) ml at two hours after delivery in the control group and (149.5±46.49) ml in the intervention group. There was a significant difference between PPH of the two groups (p<0.006). CONCLUSION: Research findings showed that the use of inspired oxygen during the third stage of labour and oxytocin infusion during 2hours later resulted in a significant decreasing in the amount of bleeding after normal vaginal delivery.

Bacterial Heat Shock Protein Activity.

Bacteria are exposed to different types of stress in their growth conditions. They have developed appropriate responses, modulated by the re-modeling of protein complexes and by phosphorylation dependent signal transduction systems, to adapt and to survive in a variety range of nature. Proteins are essential components for biologic activity in the eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell. Heat Shock Proteins (HSP) have been identified from various organisms and have critical role in cell hemostasis. Chaperone can sense environment and have different potential role in the organism evolution.

Personality Factor as a Predictor of Depression Score Among Depressed and CHD Patients.

INTRODUCTION: Many risk factors can affect depression and coronary disease, these including physiological and psychological risk factors (such as personality traits). OBJECTIVES: Our objectives were to examine whether personality factors (The Five-Factor Model) can predict depression score in the depressed and coronary heart disease (CHD) individuals compared to that of healthy subjects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To achieve the above objectives, 100 depressed (Mean=35.90 years, SD=10.59 years), and 100 CHD (Mean=46.42 years, SD=12.52 years), patients and 100 healthy subjects (Mean = 37.97 years, SD =12.49 years) were selected by convenience sampling method. To compare the three groups of participants, ANOVA test was used. Stepwise Multiple Regression Analysis was used to identify the variables that most closely predict the perceived stress and depression scores. Pearson's Correlation Co-efficient was used to examine the correlation between variables. RESULTS: In Neuroticism, the CHD patients had significant highest scores, followed by depressed patients. The healthy group had the least scores. In case of Extraversion, Openness and Agreeableness, healthy participants had significant higher scores followed by the depressed and CHD patients. Only in conscientiousness factor, Depressive and CHD groups had statistically less scores compared to the healthy group. Also, high Neuroticism and Age, and low Extraversion were significant protective factors for depression Scores of CHD patients, while high Neuroticism and low Extraversion function as predictors in the depressed and healthy groups. CONCLUSION: The effects of Neuroticism and Extraversion on depression have been reported as inconsistent across previous studies. This study indicates that, older CHD individuals with high Neuroticism and low Extraversion scores are more vulnerable for depression.

Quality of life of postmenopausal women and their spouses: a community-based study.

BACKGROUND: Most women spend more than one-third of their lives after menopause. Due to physiologic changes in that period, menopause can cause a series of symptoms such as vasomotor symptoms, psychologic problems, and sexual dysfunction, which can affect the women's quality of life (QoL) and other family members, especially their spouse. OBJECTIVES: The present study aimed to determine the association between the QoL of postmenopausal women and their husbands. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This descriptive-inferential cross-sectional study was conducted according to the census of 2006 in Iran. A total of 400 postmenopausal women aging 50 to 59 years and their spouses in 80 cluster heads of Ilam City residents were selected and studied in collaboration with the Statistical Center of Iran. The required data were gathered using the short-form health survey (SF-36) questionnaire and demographic questionnaire developed by the researcher-trained interviewers. Data were analyzed by SPSS 18 through Kruskal Wallis test, Wilcoxon signed ranks test, and correlation. RESULTS: The participants' mean age was 54.2 ± 2.8 years for women and 61.1 ± 6.1 years for their spouses. More than half of the women (57%) and about one-third of men (32.8%) were illiterate. The employed educated women aging 50 to 54 years had a higher mean score of SF-36 domains. The difference in education was significant in all domains except for mental health. There was a significant difference in age in all domains except in general health. The mean score of all domains of QoL was significantly less in the illiterate men than in the literate ones (P < 0.05). The results of the present study showed a significant correlation (P < 0.05) between the couples' QoL, vasomotor symptoms, and aging. Spearman test showed a significant positive correlation in all domains of QoL between postmenopausal women and their spouses (correlation coefficient, 0.48-0.63). CONCLUSIONS: Based on the results of the present study and other performed studies in this regard, menopause, aging, vasomotor symptoms, and education had significant association with the QoL of postmenopausal women. The reduced QoL in postmenopausal women could eventually lead to the reduced QoL of their spouses. Therefore, it is necessary to plan for the education of these women and their husbands to broaden their understanding of the changes of menopause and ways to improve their QoL.

A comparative study on the efficacy of glucose and sucrose on the vaccination pain: a randomized controlled clinical trial.

OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to compare the effectiveness of two analgesics for the management of vaccination pain. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 90 neonates to be vaccinated against Hepatitis B were assigned to Glucose, Sucrose and control groups at Shahid Mostafa Khomini hospital. 2cc oral Glucose 25% and 2cc oral Sucrose 25% with Syringe were given for 30 sec then 2 min later Hepatitis-B vaccine injected by vaccinator and pain intensity measured by Neonatal Infant Pain Scale (NIPS) during 1-2 min. The third group (control) no intervention was performed. The collected data were analysed by SPSS18 Software and ANOVA and LSD tests were used. RESULTS: Research results showed that there were no significant differences between groups in term of Apgar score, delivery type, sex, head circumstance, weight and height. By comparison of pain severity in two groups, mean and Standard deviation of pain, group that received Glucose solution had more intensity than Sucrose group (3 ± 1.66 vs. 2.90 ± 1.44), but this difference was not significant statistically (p=0.78). Comparison of pain intensity in control and intervention groups showed that the pain intensity in control group is higher than intervention groups (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Patients who received Glucose or Sucrose had lower pain intensity in comparison with the other. The pain intensity in patients who received sucrose was less than the glucose group, but this difference was not significant statistically.

Occupational Mental Health: A Study of Work-Related Mental Health among Clinical Nurses.

OBJECTIVE: This paper reports a study performed to investigate and assess the mental health as well as the demographic characteristics of nurses to examine their mental health status based on four physical, anxiety, social-function and depression items. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This descriptive cross-sectional study was accomplished on 86 nurses working at three hospitals, affiliated to Iranian health ministry, in Ilam city(western Iran) all the cases were selected by purposeful sampling method. Data was collected by a two-part questionnaire containing individual data and GHQ -28 Standardized Questionnaire. The GHO-28 was developed by Goldberg, in 1978, as a screening tool to detect those likely to have or be at risk of developing psychiatric disorders. The GHQ-28 is a 28-item measure of emotional distress in medical settings. Analysis was done by SPSS 18 software. RESULTS: The majority of participants were females(50.6 vs.49.4) of 35-40 years old(27.2% ), 84 percent were married(vs.16%), 35.8 percent with 10-15 years of record(vs.33.3% less than 5), 22.2% with 5-10, and 8.6% with more than 15-years of work record. The majority of participants have worked in surgical wards of hospitals. The analysis of GHQ results showed that 43.2%(n=35) of participants were suspected to suffer from mental disorders(vs.56.8% n=46 healthy participants); of all the suspected cases, 12.3% were supposed to have physical symptoms, 16% anxiety symptoms, 42% social dysfunction, and 6.2% symptoms of depression. In general, the participants demonstrated a Mean±SD of mental health score equal to 23.65±9.43. CONCLUSION: Research results showed that the high prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress symptoms among nurses is alarming. It was concluded that providing efficient adequate and appropriate support services for this group can result in more healthy nurses as well as promotion of public health.

Effect of acupressure (UB32) on pain intensity in intramuscular injections.

BACKGROUND: Pain originating from intramuscular (IM) injection should not be underestimated, because it can damage the nurse-patient relationship. This research aimed at answering two main questions, whether acupressure is effective on pain severity due to IM injection or not and whether pain severity in two groups is different or not. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This research was performed in government-affiliated hospitals of Ilam. The patients were 15-55 years old. Subjects were individually asked to participate in the research, and an informed consent was obtained from them. Before injection, the patients were asked to lie in prone position and the acupressure point UB32 was found. It was pressed for 1 min circularly. Then, the acupressure point was pressed directly (pressure equal to 4.5 kg/cm(2)) by thumb three times sequentially. After acupressure, 3 ml penicillin 6.3.3 was injected to buttock muscle. In the control group was injected only penicillin 6.3.3 by the conventional method. Collected data were analyzed by SPSS 16 version. RESULTS: Means of pain intensity in the acupressure group according to body mass index values (BMIs) were 1.50 ± 0.75 in thin, 1.64 ± 0.72 in normal, 1.38 ± 0.60 in overweight, 1.40 ± 0.54 in obese, and 1 ± 0.0 in severely obese subjects, with a total score of 1.53 ± 0.68. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed no significant difference between mean pain intensities based on BMI. There was no significant difference in the two groups concerning BMI and age (age: 30.24 ± 10.98 vs. 29.26 ± 10.07; BMI: 23.74 ± 4.45 vs. 23.88 ± 5.74), but the difference between them in terms of pain intensity mean was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: It is concluded that acupressure in UB32 is effective on reducing the pain severity. Pain severity mean in the acupressure group was lesser than in the other group, and t-test showed a significant difference between the two groups.

Assessment of Anxiety in Pregnancy Following Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) and Associated Infertility Factors in Women Commencing Treatment.

BACKGROUND: Successful pregnancy is the ultimate goal of almost all couples. However, this pleasant event is usually accompanied psychological and behavioral changes and can result in stress in women, particularly women who pregnant by assisted reproductive technology methods (ARTs). OBJECTIVES: This study aims to determine the anxiety level during pregnancy and its relation with infertility factors in women who has been pregnant by Assisted Reproduction Technology (ART) methods. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total number of 100 ARTs pregnant women who came to three infertility centers in Tehran from August to November 2009 participated in this descriptive cross sectional study. The rational for selecting the subjects was their availability to the researcher at the time of the research. Anxiety was measured by Beck Anxiety Inventory and for obtaining the infertility data, a questionnaire designed by the researcher was given to the subjects. Data were statistically analyzed using the inferential statistic of chi-square. RESULTS: Study results showed that 34 % of subjects were anxious (moderate and sever levels in total). There are significant relations between infertility duration, history of treatment failure and anxiety level (P = 0.03) (P = 0.02). There were no statistically significant relationships with regard to other variables. CONCLUSIONS: Infertility duration and history of treatment failure in ARTs pregnant women are two factors that affect the anxiety level during pregnancy.

A comparative study on the efficacy of Ibuprofen and celecoxib on the intensity of perineal pain following episiotomy: a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Pain is a worldwide problem that often originates from disease process, and diagnostic and treatment procedures such as surgical operations. OBJECTIVES: This trial was performed to compare the effectiveness of two analgesics for the management of perineal pain caused by episiotomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 170 nulliparous women who gave birth vaginally with episiotomy between March 2009 and November 2010 were randomly assigned to receive either ibuprofen or celecoxib which were given orally every 6 or 12 hours, respectively. Pain levels were measured before the intervention, and at 1, 2, 4, 8 and 12 hours after providing the first dose on a 10-cm visual analogue scale. RESULTS: The results showed that the two groups had no significant differences regarding demographic characteristics, maternal, neonatal, and post-delivery factors, and mean premedication pain severity. Means of pain severity were different between the two groups as patients in the celecoxib group had lower means than the other group at 1,2,4,8 and 12 hours (4.01 ± 1.8 vs. 4.46 ± 1.9, 3.17 ± 1.9 vs. 3.79 ± 1.7, 2.89 ± 1.3 vs. 2.96 ± 1.5, 2.19 ± 1.8 vs. 2.55 ± 1.4, and 1.98 ± 1.1 vs. 2.45 ± 1.2, respectively) after administration of analgesics. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who received celecoxib had lower VAS in comparison with others. Although these differences were not significant, as celecoxib has longer half-life, fewer upper GI symptoms, and is better tolerated based on the previous studies, and this study is in favor of using it.

What is missed in self-immolated patients' care? A grounded theory study.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To explore rehabilitation care process in patients who commit self-immolation. BACKGROUND: Self-immolation is not only a type of burn injury, but it is also a suicidal method. It is placed in burn injury category that requires long-term rehabilitation and treatment measures. As a suicidal method, among all forms of suicidal attempts, it is the most dramatic, violent and often difficult one to understand. Unfortunately, there are few reported studies investigating experiences and perceptions of nurses about burn care and with qualitative study about the patients' experiences and perceptions. DESIGN: On the basis of the research question, the grounded theory method was used. METHODS: Considering ethical codes of Belmont and Helsinki statements, purposive sampling was used to select the participants. The patients were deliberately selected, based on the research needs. They were self-immolated patients being referred to Talaghani hospital of Ilam (western Iran) or discharged previously (time of interview and observation ranged from immediately later the burn till 5 years after), in Ilam, where self-immolation rate is very high. The main methods for data collection were deep, open ended, semi-structured interviews, dairies and observations. The interviews were audio taped in Persian, and verbatim transcriptions were made. By doing so, semantic meaning is preserved, and misinterpretation of data due to translation into English is minimised. Data analysis was conducted using the Strauss and Corbin method. RESULTS: Five main categories were emerged: situation of crisis unprofessional care, prolongation and formidability of the journey, self-immolation as paralyse, and attempt for self-management. Finally, by constant, comparison of collected data and emerged categories, central variable entitled unintegrated care emerged as the main problem of self-immolated patients' care. CONCLUSION: The study comes to the conclusion that we need to focus on specific considerations to provide integrated care for the burned patients as it is a decisive component of care that is missed. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Although self-immolation requires long-term treatment and social, emotional rehabilitation, such a rehabilitation care process is not clear.

Tragedy of women's self-immolation in Iran and developing communities: a review.

Committing Suicide is an awful way to die as well as a historical psycho-social problem of human community worldwide. Suicide is an action deliberately initiated and performed by a person with complete awareness of its fatal outcome, prevalence of which is very rare in developed countries, but it is reported with more frequency in Baltic region, Africa (including Egypt), The Middle East (including Iran), The Far East, particularly India and Vietnam. Its rate has ranged from10 per 100,000 people/year in Egypt, and up to 35 per 100,000 people/year in Baltic region (including Lithuania, Finland, and Russia). Categorically Iran is the 93th country of the world in terms of suicide Rate, but self immolation in the reported suicides is very high. There are many different approaches of suicides based on culture, symbols, religion, geographical regions, genders and socioeconomic factors. Self-inflicted burn or self immolation is a common suicidal method. According to the American Burn Association, self- immolation is placed in burn injury category that required long-term treatment as well as social and emotional rehabilitations. Deliberative burn injuries are classified into self- inflicted (self-immolation) or else-inflicted burn (assault burn). In this review study, we try to focus on self- inflicted burn or self- immolation as the most dramatic and violent method of suicide. The present review article was aimed to assess the epidemiology of self immolation phenomenon and its associated factors as a worldwide problem, particularly in Iran and other developing communities. The main victims of this awful way of death are women who are considered the most vulnerable group in such societies.

Comparison between massage and music therapies to relieve the severity of labor pain.

BACKGROUND: During labor, women experience a high level of intense, stressful and steady pain that may negatively affect both mothers and neonates. Painkillers have previously been used for childbearing women, but nowadays, owing to some well-known limitations and serious side effects, nonpharmacologic methods such as massage and music therapies are being broadly recommended. The present clinical trial was conducted to compare the effects of massage and music therapies on the severity of labor pain in the Ilam province of western Iran. MATERIALS & METHODS: Overall, 101 primigravidae who were hospitalized for vaginal delivery were recruited and randomly stratified into two groups of either massage (n = 51) or music (n = 50) therapies. Pain was measured using the visual analog scale and the two groups were compared in terms of pain severity before and after the interventions. RESULTS: Mothers in the massage therapy group had a lower level of pain compared with those in the music therapy group (p = 0.009). A significant difference was observed between the two groups in terms of pain severity after intervention (p = 0.01). Agonizing, or most severe, labor pain was significantly relieved after massage therapy (p = 0.001). CONCLUSION: Massage therapy was an effective method for reducing and relieving labor pain compared with music therapy and can be clinically recommended as an alternative, safe and affordable method of pain relief where using either pharmacological or nonpharmacological methods are optional.