Background: Marital satisfaction is one of the pivotal elements of emotional stability of couples and its effects on different aspects of peoples’ lives are undeniable. Sexual dysfunction is one of the main health concerns in the majority of postmenopausal women and one of the key factors effective on marital satisfaction. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of sexual issues and communication skills education on marital satisfaction of Iranian Muslim postmenopausal women. Methods: In this randomized, controlled trial, 100 married postmenopausal women at the age range 45-55 living in south of Tehran-Iran and suffering from sexual dysfunction were allocated into two groups using block randomization. The intervention for the intervention group consisted of four sexual and communication skills education sessions and the control group received only routine trainings of the health center. Blinding the researcher was not possible due to the type of the intervention. ENRICH questionnaire was used to evaluate marital satisfaction in the both groups before and eight weeks after the intervention. Also, BDI-II and FSFI questionnaires were completed for both groups before the intervention. General linear model was used to compare the groups on the outcomes adjusted for baseline values (before the intervention). Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 19. P values of less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant.
Results: In the intervention and control groups 45 and 47 of the participants completed the study, respectively. Eight weeks after the intervention and comparing with the control group, marital satisfaction [adjusted difference: 7.78, (95% CI; -4.43 to -11.14)] (P<0.001) and sexual function (P<0.001) in the intervention group significantly increased. Conclusion: Four session educational program on sexual issues and communication skills can be used for improve of marital satisfaction in Muslim postmenopausal women suffering from sexual dysfunction.
