Menopause is a natural part of the aging process in women and is defined as occurring 12 months after the last menstrual period marking the end of menstrual cycles. Menopause has a negative impact on the quality of life (QoL). Various generic and specific questionnaires have been used for assessing different dimensions of QoL in menopausal women. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify those general and specific instruments, and to determine the factors that affect QoL in menopausal women. We assessed eight specific and three general tools and found that some general and specific instruments, such as the 36-item short form (SF-36) and the Menopause Specific Quality of Life Questionnaire (MENQOL), were mostly used for assessment. The specific tools available were diverse. Employment status and a high educational level in menopausal women were considered to be protective factors in improving QoL. Identification of predicting factors of QoL, such as body mass index, race, age, duration of menopause, and social and occupational variables can help to improve the QoL of these women allowing planning of psychological consultations and practical interventions.

Background: Some human diseases such as tuberculosis, Legionnaires' disease and different forms of bacterial pneumonia, coccidioidomycosis, influenza, measles, and gastrointestinal illnesses are the result of exposure to bioaerosols. In addition, they are associated with some noninfectious airway diseases, such as allergies and asthma. Objectives: In the education hospitals of Hamedan University of medical sciences, there were no previous qualitative and quantitative studies of bioaerosols in the air of wards, so in this study the quality and quantity of bioaerosols in hospital ward’s air was investigated to establish a reference for future studies or measures. Materials and Methods: In this cross sectional research, 30 wards in five educational hospitals of Hamadan city were studied. More than 180 air samples were collected from the hospitals. The samples were transferred to blood agar and Sabouraud medium and cultivated immediately. Type and number of colonies were determined in the laboratory. Bioaerosol concentrations were calculated in terms of cfu/m³. After bioaerosols isolation, the isolates were identified by morphology of colony, Gram staining and by standard biochemical tests as required for bacterial or fungal bioaerosols. The SPSS software was used for data management. ANOVA and t-test statistical analyses were also used. Results: As the results demonstrated, highest and lowest averages of bioaerosol density were obtained from Shahid Beheshti and Fatemieh Hospitals (36.18 cfu/m³ Vs. 24.03 cfu/m³), respectively. Highest and lowest concentrations of bioaerosols were found inWomen1 and operating room wards of Fatemiyeh Hospital, respectively (54.4cfu/m³ VS. 13.3cfu/m³). It appears that there had been no significant correlation between concentration of bioaerosols in the hospitals and available guideline values (P = 0.3). The highest fungal populations were Penicelium spp. (32.06%), Cladosporium spp. (20.5%), Aspergillus fumigatus (14.61%) and A. niger (7.43%), respectively. The highest bacterial population was coagulase-negative staphylococci (32.49%), Bacillus spp. (14.74%), Micrococcus spp. (13.68%) and Staphylococcus aureus (11.34%), respectively. Conclusions: Quantitative bioaerosols concentration in the air of some hospitals was more than the available guideline i.e., 30 cfu/m³. Bioaerosol density of all surveyed hospitals can relate to patients presence in wards and their visitors, incorrect ventilation, and probably inefficient disinfection. Most surveyed hospitals have no air treatment systems thus to reduce bioaerosol concentration, standard ventilation systems should designed and utilized. Keywords: Bioaerosol; Hospital; Bacteria; Fungi; Air Pollution; Indoor

Background: Anxiety has negative effects on mental and physical performance, quality of life, duration of hospitalization, and even on the treatment of patients with cancer. Objectives: Today acupressure is widely used to treat anxiety. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of acupressure on anxiety in patients with cancer. Patients and Methods: A double-blind randomized clinical trial was conducted on 85 patients hospitalized with 3 groups including acupressure group (n = 27), sham group (n = 28), and control group (n = 30) in the hematologic ward of Shahid Beheshti Hospital of Hamadan, Iran, in 2013. The sampling permuted-block randomization with triple block was used. The anxiety of the patients in the experimental, sham, and control groups were measured with Spielberger’s State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Then, real acupressure was performed in the experimental group and fake acupressure in the sham group, and only routine care was provided for the control group. Anxiety of the patients was also assessed at 5 and 10 days after the intervention. Statistical analysis of the data was performed by SPSS software using repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post hoc least significant difference (LSD) test. Results: According to the findings, the mean level of anxiety before the intervention between groups were matched (P > 0.05). Acupressure had a significant influence on the anxiety in the experimental group at 5 (45.30 ± 7.14) and 10 days (43.48 ± 6.82) after the intervention (P < 0.05). However, it did not have a significant impact on their covert anxiety (45.48 ± 7.92 at 5^th day vs 45.63 ± 8.08 at 10th day, P > 0.05). No significant differences were observed in the fake points regarding overt and covert anxiety of patients in the sham group (overt anxiety; 47.57 ± 7.85 at 5^th day vs. 46.71 ± 7.32 at 10^th day, P > 0.05) (covert anxiety; 47.96 ± 6.33 at 5^th day vs. 46.89 ± 6.94 at 10^th day, P > 0.05). Moreover, the routine care provided for the control group did not have any effect on the overt and covert anxiety of the patients (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Acupressure is recommended as a complementary therapy to reduce anxiety in patients with cancer because of its low cost, safety, and simplicity. Keywords: Neoplasms; Anxiety; Acupressure

Infertility is considered as a major health care problem of different communities. The high prevalence of this issue doubled its importance. A significant proportion of infertility have been related to environmental conditions and also acquired risk factors. Different environmental conditions emphasized the need to study the different causes of infertility in each area. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency causes of infertility in infertile couples. In this cross sectional descriptive study 1200 infertile men and women that were referred to infertility clinic of Fatemieh Hospital during 2010 to 2011, were examined. This center is the only governmental center for infertility in Hamadan. Sampling was based on census method. Information about the patients was obtained from medical examinations and laboratory findings. To analyze the data, descriptive statistics such as frequencies and the mean were used. The prevalence of primary and secondary infertility was 69.5% and 30.5% respectively. Among the various causes of infertility women factors (88.6%) had the highest regard. In the causes of female infertility, menstrual disorders, diseases (obesity, thyroid diseases, and diabetes), ovulation dysfunction, uterine factor, fallopian tubes and cervical factor had the highest prevalence respectively. The causes of male infertility based on their frequency included semen fluid abnormalities, genetic factors, vascular abnormalities, and anti-spermatogenesis factors, respectively. Etiology pattern of infertility in our study is similar with the many other patterns that have been reported by the World Health Organization. However, frequency of menstrual disorders is much higher than other studies that require further consideration.