Dysmenorrhea (pain during menstruation) is one of the most common medical conditions among women of reproductive age. Dysmenorrhea has been studied around the world but not yet in Greece. The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence, characteristics, and impact of dysmenorrhea on the wellbeing (exercising, and social and academic functioning) among nursing students in Greece. A cross-sectional study of 637 nursing students was conducted by administering a questionnaire at a university in Athens. The prevalence of dysmenorrhea was 89.2% and the rate of severe intensity was 52.5%. Factors that were associated with severe dysmenorrhea were family history (p = 0.02), early menarche (p = 0.05) and menstruation duration (p = 0.05). Women with moderate and severe pain reported using pain relievers (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), paracetamol etc., p < 0.0005). Finally, activities affected by severe pain were class attendance (p = 0.01), personal studying (p < 0.0005), exercising (p < 0.0005), and socializing (p < 0.0005). Exam attendance (p = 0.27) and clinical placement attendance (p = 0.48) were not affected by severe dysmenorrhea. Dysmenorrhea has a high prevalence among nursing students and seems to affect important aspects of wellbeing and academic performance when the pain intensity is severe. The present findings lay the foundation for further investigation of dysmenorrhea both in the Greek population and cross-culturally.

Four experiments explored the factors controlling human responding on random interval (RI) schedules of reinforcement. All experiments identified 2 types of responding: "bout-initiation" and "within-bout" responding. Responding on RI schedules was related to the interval value rates, being higher on an RI-30s than on an RI-60s or RI-120s schedule, which impacted bout-initiation responding to the greater degree (Experiments 1 and 3). Experiment 2 found similar overall response rates on random ratio (RR) and random interval with a linear feedback loop (RI+) schedules, with both higher than on an RI schedule. Bout-initiation rates were similar across all schedules, but within-bout responding differed. Experiments 3 and 4 examined the impact of a response cost and noted greater bout-initiation responding but not greater within-bout rates with low costs. Overall, these experiments suggest that bout-initiation responding may be subject to control by factors that increase the strength of conditioning to the context, whereas within-bout responding is less sensitive to these influences. (PsycINFO Database Record

Purpose: To assess breast cancer patients’ quality of life six months after the completion of adjuvant chemotherapy, and to investigate factors affecting this. Methods: The study was conducted in one large hospital located in a major Greek city. A convenience sample of 61 breast cancer outpatients was recruited. A questionnaire, including the SF-36 scale and questions regarding demographic and clinical information, was used to collect data. Results: The mean age of the patients was 51.52 ± 12.10. The effect of age on the physical role was significant (p = 0.003). Τhe effect of menopausal status on physical role was also found to be significant (p = 0.003); this might be explained by age. Regarding the treatment type, patients who received hormone therapy in addition to surgery and chemotherapy reported a significantly higher quality of life in terms of bodily pain (p = 0.04) and vitality (p = 0.04) than patients who underwent only surgery and chemotherapy. Conclusions: Quality of life is affected by factors such as age, menopausal status, and previous therapy. Health care professionals should be more aware of the factors that influence the quality of life domains (physical role, bodily pain, vitality) within this group of cancer patients in order to meet their needs following acute treatment.

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The Disgust Scale has been designed to measure disgust propensity—the individual ease in experiencing disgust. The present study aimed to explore the validity, reliability, the factor structure, and the measurement invariance of the Greek version of the Disgust Scale-Revised (DS-R). A sample of 754 healthy participants completed the Greek version of the DS-R. A subset (n = 363) also completed the revised Symptom checked list and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, in order to examine the concurrent validity. Exploratory and Confirmatory factor analyses in different subsets were used to examine the factor structure. Multiple indicators–multiple causes model (MIMIC) models were used to assess the measurement invariance across gender and age. Demographic influences were assessed using t-tests, ANOVA, and Pearson’s correlations. Exploratory factor analysis concluded to two and three factor models, with a factor structure similar to the ones proposed in the literature. Confirmatory factor analysis and bi-factor analysis provided evidence in favor of the three-factor solution. Measurement invariance test revealed differences in six items across gender, and three items across age. The psychometric properties of the factors were satisfactory. Demographic influences on the responses were present, especially with respect to gender. The Greek version of the DS-R demonstrated satisfactory psychometric properties, making it suitable for use for the Greek population.

Introduction Recent studies have reported that the quarantine imposed in several countries around the world due to Covid-19 affected the sexual function and relationship quality. On the March 23, 2020 the Greek government imposed a national quarantine to contain the spread of the pandemic. The impact of such conditions on sexual function and relationship quality of couples is unknown. Aim To investigate sexual function and relationship quality of couples during the quarantine. Methods An online anonymous survey was conducted one month post-impose of the quarantine, between the April 21 and the May 3, 2020. Adult respondents in a relationship completed a questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics, structured inquiries regarding sexual activity and quality of relationship, anxiety level, and mood during the quarantine, as well as the IIEF and FSFI indices. Outcomes Sexual function was assessed using the Greek versions of the FSFI and IIEF for females and males respectively. Sexual activity using 5 statements regarding frequency of sexual thoughts, masturbation, and intercourse, quality of intercourse and general estimation of the level of sexual function. Participants graded their level of agreement. Relationship quality was assessed using 5 questions regarding communication, company, understanding, tension and general estimation of companionship. Participants graded their level of agreement. Two additional statements were used in order to evaluate mood and the level of anxiety. Results A sum of 299 adult heterosexual participants in a relationship participated. Little or no negative impact on sexual function was reported. Increased anxiety and deficient mood were reported only for those with no access to their partner. Being in a steady relationship and living with their partner, but only for couples without children, resulted in satisfaction by sexual activity and enhanced emotional security. Conclusion Sexual function and relationship quality appeared as not affected by the quarantine and by the measures of social distancing. Sotiropoulou P, Ferenidou F, Owens D, et al. The Impact of Social Distancing Measures Due to COVID-19 Pandemic on Sexual Function and Relationship Quality of Couples in Greece. Sex Med 2021;9:100364.

Background and objective: Cancer and diabetes are two highly prevalent diseases worldwide and influence the quality of life. The study aimed to compare the quality of life in patients diagnosed with cancer and diabetes with those without diabetes undergoing chemotherapy and to investigate the responsible factors. Method: A convenience sample of 101 participants that had cancer and diabetes type 2 and 99 had cancer without diabetes, were used. Results: Patients with comorbid diabetes were divided based on their diabetes duration and whether they had glycemic control or not. Diabetic cancer patients without glycemic control had lower scores in global health status in physical and emotional functioning compared to diabetic cancer patients with glycemic control and patients without diabetes (p < .05). After adjusting for demographic characteristics, the differences between the group with diabetes and without glycemic control and the other two groups on global health status were statistically significant (p < .05). Patients with over 7 years of diabetes had a statistically significantly lower emotional functioning than the no diabetes group and lower global health status score that both of the other groups (p < .05). After adjusting for clinical and demographic characteristics, only the difference between the ≥ 7 years diabetes duration group and the no diabetes groups remained significant. Conclusion: The presence of diabetes in cancer patients underwent chemotherapy seems to negatively influence certain domains of quality of life and this seems to be affected by the duration of diabetes and whether glycemic control has been achieved.

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