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Background & aim: Infertility-related stress and anxiety can negatively affect the therapeutic outcome through directly influencing the physiological functions of the body. Also, improved self-efficacy of infertile women results in greater emotional stability and more persistence in treatment. The present study aimed to explore the perceptions and experiences of self-efficacy in infertile women who received acupressure during in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/ICSI). Methods: This qualitative study was conducted in Milad Infertility Center, Mashhad, Iran, from September 2015 to August 2016, using conventional content analysis. The study population consisted of 30 female candidates for IVF/ICSI treatment, who had completed acupressure therapy, the data of whom were extracted from a clinical trial. Out of 30 females, 26 cases were willing to participate in the study. The data were collected through in-depth and semi-structured interviews and analyzed in MAXQDA (version 10) software based on Elo and Kyngas approach (2008) through three phases of preparation, organization, and reporting. Results: Based on the results, two themes were obtained from the experiences of infertile women regarding the impact of acupressure on their infertility self-efficacy. These two themes included the improvement of the negative attitudes towards infertility and ability to deal with infertility treatment process. Conclusion: We argue that acupressure can improve the sense of self-efficacy in infertile women regarding their attitude toward infertility and treatment issues. Further studies are suggested on the influence of acupressure on various aspects of infertility.

Background & aim: Infertility can lead to a diminished sense of well-being and is associated with a high frequency of psychosomatic and somatic disorders. Generally, infertile women are more affected by infertility than men. This study aimed to determine factors influencing anxiety among infertile women undergoing in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 224 infertile women who were candidate for IVF/ICSI referred to Milad IVF Center, Mashhad, Iran, from September 2015 to July 2016. Prior to the treatment, the participants completed the demographic characteristics questionnaire and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) to assess the level of anxiety. Additionally, a self-structured questionnaire containing the infertility-associated data including the duration and cause of infertility as well as history and the duration of treatment, was completed by the respondents. The subjects were selected through purposive sampling technique. Data analysis was performed using Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis, Fisher exact test, regression tests, as well as Spearman’s correlation coefficient in SPSS software, version 16. Results: The results obtained from BAI showed that 38.4% of the subjects had moderate anxiety. There was a significant relationship between the level of anxiety and age (P=0.001), the cause of infertility (P=0.007), and the duration of treatment (P=0.001). Conclusion: As the level of anxiety was higher in infertile women with younger age, female factor infertility and longer duration of treatment, it is recommended to consider this population more vulnerable and to provide them supportive counseling to be able to overcome their anxiety.

Background & aim: Stress and anxiety due to waiting for treatment results and uncertainty of treatment success are common problems in infertile women. Acupuncture has been suggested as an effective strategy to relieve anxiety. This study aimed to review the available evidence on the effects of acupuncture on anxiety in infertile women. Methods: This systematic review was conducted via searching in databases such as MEDLINE, PubMed, Cochrane Library, and PsycINFO, as well as clinical trial registries and reference lists of the retrieved articles. Selected articles included the studies published since the initiation of each database until March 2015. All randomized controlled trials regarding the effects of acupuncture on the anxiety of infertile women were reviewed in this study. Moreover, methodological qualities of the selected studies were examined based on the checklist of Oxford Center for Evidence-Based Medicine by two independent investigators. Results: Literature search yielded 193 relevant titles and abstracts, which were narrowed down to four randomized controlled trials involving 595 women.The majority of the reviewed articles showed that use of acupuncture could decrease anxiety in infertile women. Conclusion: According to the results of this systematic review, acupuncture is an effective technique in controlling the anxiety of infertile women. However, it is recommended that future studies with more appropriate design and methodology be conducted in this regard.