Effects of a Few Minutes of Abdominal Drawing-in Maneuver on Balance Test Results

Abstract

Background: Menopause is a natural part of women's lives and is associated with a series of complications that can impair their quality of life. This study was conducted to determine the effect of educational interventions based on the Multi-Theory Model (MTM) on the quality of life among menopausal women. Methods: This randomized controlled trial was conducted on 80 menopausal women who met the inclusion criteria and were selected through the multi-stage stratified random sampling method. The participants were randomly allocated to either the control or intervention group (40 subjects per group). The intervention group participated in five 45-min educational sessions based on the MTM on the predetermined days of the week. The quality of life level scores were collected at baseline, immediately, and three months after the intervention using the Menopause-Specific Quality of Life questionnaire (MENQOL). On the other hand, the control group did not receive any intervention during the study period. Results: Analysis of variance of repeated measures showed a significant interaction between time and intervention. Therefore, the independent t-test was used to compare the mean score of quality of life, before, immediately, and three months after the intervention. The results showed a significant difference between the two groups regarding the scores immediately after and three months after the intervention. Conclusion: Structured educational program based on the MTM could be used as a simple and noninvasive intervention that helps menopausal women’s general health through menopausal symptoms relief, thereby improving their quality of life. Further interventions with larger sample sizes may be required to confirm these findings.