title: Preconception interventions in infertile couples.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Preconception interventions in infertile couples can increase the chance of pregnancy and lower its complications. The success in infertility treatment and achieving a successful pregnancy is of great importance among infertile couples compared to others. This study has tried to investigate necessary preconception interventions before beginning of infertility treatment cycle among infertile couples.
  
  
  METHODS
  This is a cross-sectional study of 268 individuals presenting to fertility clinics (Moshtagh and Shahid beheshty) across the city of Isfahan, Iran. Simple sampling method was used. Questionnaire and patients' medical records were used to collect data. Descriptive and analytic statistical methods and SPSS software were used for analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results showed that the interventions related to diseases treatment and prescription of folic acid before the beginning of infertility treatment were complete for most of the subject (47.06% and 79.9% respectively), but referral for genetics counseling had not been conducted in most of the cases (98.9%). Specific interventions in relation with the infertility treatment before beginning the treatment cycle had been conducted in 50% of the subjects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this study showed a weakness concerning necessary preconception interventions before beginning of infertility treatment cycle in most of the studied subjects. With regard to the effect of preconception interventions on outcome of infertility treatment, and with consideration of high importance of pregnancy success in infertile couples, paying more attention to conduct this manner is necessary.
authors.affiliation: Department of Midwifery and Reproductive Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Isfahan, Iran.
authors.forename: Nafisehsadat
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nekuei
authors.affiliation: Department of Midwifery and Reproductive Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Isfahan, Iran.
authors.forename: Ashraf
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kazemi
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Health, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors.forename: Akbar
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hasanzadeh
keywords: Infertility; Iran; preconception care; pregnancy outcome; subfertility