Effectiveness of a Single Education and Counseling Intervention in Reducing Anxiety in Women Undergoing Hysterosalpingography: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Hysterosalpingography (HSG) is generally considered a stressful and painful procedure; we aimed to evaluate whether a single education and counseling intervention could reduce women’s distress and pain after undergoing HSG for infertility. Patients were randomized into control group (n=108) and inte...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Alfredo La Fianza, Carolina Dellafiore, Daniele Travaini, Davide Broglia, Francesca Gambini, Luigia Scudeller, Carmine Tinelli, Edgardo Caverzasi, Natascia Brondino
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Hindawi Limited 2014-01-01
Series:The Scientific World Journal
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/598293
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Summary:Hysterosalpingography (HSG) is generally considered a stressful and painful procedure; we aimed to evaluate whether a single education and counseling intervention could reduce women’s distress and pain after undergoing HSG for infertility. Patients were randomized into control group (n=108) and intervention group (n=109). All patients filled the following questionnaires before and after HSG: Zung self-rating anxiety scale (Z-SAS), Zung self-rating depression scale (Z-SDS), and an ad hoc questionnaire designed to evaluate HSG procedure knowledge. Pain was scored using a visual analog scale. The intervention consisted in a 45-minute individualised session 48 h before HSG. We observed a reduction of anxiety and depression scores in the intervention arm compared to the control group. After controlling for potential confounding variables, intervention was an independent predictor of the difference of Z-SAS score before and after HSG. This is the first randomised controlled trial to assess the potential effectiveness of a single education and counseling intervention to lower anxiety in a diagnostic setting.
ISSN:2356-6140
1537-744X