Effectiveness of motivational interview on psychological distress of women with human papilloma virus: a randomized clinical trial.

Introduction: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most important sexually transmitted infections. In most cases, HPV infection resolves on its own, but some types of HPV infection cause genital warts, and some can cause various types of cancer, such as cervical and anal cancer. The psychological impact of HPV infection on individuals is significant. Hence, this study aimed to assess the impact of motivational interviewing on the anxiety, stress, and depression levels of women with HPV.

Methods: This randomized controlled study utilized a pretest-posttest research design with a control group and involved 62 HPV patients from healthcare centers affiliated with Babol University of Medical Sciences, Iran. In 2023.06.11 after we received ethics code. The patients were divided into two groups: an experimental group consisting of 31 individuals and a control group also comprising 31 individuals. The allocation to these groups was determined using the blocked randomized allocation technique based on pretest scores of MS. The experimental group received motivational intervention over five sessions, while the control group received routine intervention. All participants completed the DASS-21 questionnaire before and immediately after the interventions. The significance level was set at 0.05.

Results: The mean age in the intervention group was 33.58 ± 6.14 and in the control group was 34.96 ± 7.04 years. The effect of the intervention group was significant in decreasing the total score with Effect-size = 0.954 (P < 0.001). Thus, a significant decrease was observed in depression with an effect size of 0.932, anxiety with an effect size of 0.943, and stress with an effect size of 0.185, respectively with P < 0.001, P = 0.009, and P = 0.001. Anxiety, depression, and stress scores in the intervention group decreased by more than 50% on average compared to the control group.

Conclusion: The results of the current research indicated that motivational interviewing may effectively enhance mental health in patients with HPV by reducing anxiety, depression, and stress. Additionally, it can offer useful recommendations to healthcare professionals for successful follow-up and improvement of the mental well-being of these patients.

Trial registration number: IRCT20230531058348N1, Approval Date: 2021.10.10.