Experience of dysmenorrhea among a group of physical therapy students from Cairo University: an exploratory study

Dalia M Kamel, Sayed A Tantawy, Gehan A Abdelsamea, Dalia M Kamel, Sayed A Tantawy, Gehan A Abdelsamea

Abstract

Introduction: Dysmenorrhea is a condition describing the painful cramps that women feel before or during the menstrual period. While dysmenorrhea is the most common gynecologic complaint affecting adolescent and young women and there has been significant progress in understanding its pathophysiology and managing the symptoms, many young women do not seek medical consultation and remain untreated.

Aim of the study: The aim of the study was to explore the prevalence of dysmenorrhea, its physical impact, and associated coping behaviors among university students.

Methods: A total of 269 female college students volunteered to participate in the study. Data regarding the students' experience with dysmenorrhea were collected via self-reported questionnaire developed based on relevant literature. Pain was scored on visual analog scale (VAS).

Results: Most respondents (84.01%) reported feeling pain in the abdomen and back (VAS score, 5.00). Mood swings (84.8%) and dizziness (48.2%) were, respectively, the most common affective and somatic symptoms related to menstruation. There was a significant difference in the amount of menstrual flow (p=0.004) and incidence of dysmenorrhea (p=0.03) according to menstrual regularity. Most students (91.2%) did not seek medical consultation for dysmenorrhea, and 62.4% used analgesics. However, no significant correlation (p=0.25) was found between analgesic intake and pain relief. While most students (90.7%) did not miss exams, 48.7% reported poor satisfaction with their academic performance because of dysmenorrhea.

Conclusion: Dysmenorrhea is highly prevalent among college students, with many physical impacts and associated activity limitations. Collaborative efforts from health care providers, program coordinators, and parents should focus on increasing awareness and improving management strategies to treat dysmenorrhea.

Keywords: dysmenorrhea; menstrual cycle; physical impact; prevalence; treatment.

Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

References

    1. Ali TS, Rizvi SN. Menstrual knowledge and practices of female adolescents in urban Karachi, Pakistan. J Adolesc. 2000;33:531–541.
    1. Esimai O, Esan GO. Awareness of menstrual abnormality amongst college students in urban area of Ile-Ife, Osun state, Nigeria. Indian J Community Med. 2010;35:63–66.
    1. Avasarala AK, Panchangam S. Dysmenorrhea in different settings: are the rural and urban adolescent girls perceiving and managing the dysmenorrhea problem differently? Indian J Community Med. 2008;33(4):246–249.
    1. Emans SJ, Laufer RL, Goldstein DP. Pediatric & Adolescent Gynecology. 5th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins; 2005.
    1. Twigg J. Dysmenorrhea. Curr Obstet Gynecol. 2002;12:341–345.
    1. O’Connell K, Davis AR, Westhoff C. Self-treatment pattern among adolescent girls with dysmenorrhea. J Pediar Adolesc Gynecol. 2006;19:285–289.
    1. Lee LK, Chen PC, Lee K, Kaur J. Menstruation among adolescent girls in Malaysia: a cross sectional school survey. Singapore Med J. 2006;47:869–874.
    1. Potal A, Celik H, Gurates B, et al. Prevalence of primary dysmenorrhea in adult female university students. Arch Gynecol Obstet. 2009;279:527–532.
    1. Unsal A, Ayranci U, Tozun M, Arslan G, Calik E. Prevalence of dysmenorrhea and its effect on quality of life among a group of female university students. Ups J Med Sci. 2010;115(2):138–145.
    1. Habibi N, Huang M, Gan W, Zulida R, Safavi SM. Dysmenorrhea and factors associated with its intensity among undergraduate students: a cross-sectional study. Pain Manag Nurs. 2015;16(6):855–861.
    1. Kumbhar S, Reddy M, Sujana B, Roja RK, Balkrishna C. Prevalence of dysmenorrhea among adolescent girls (14–19 yrs) of Kadapa District and its impact on quality of life: a cross sectional study. Natl J Community Med. 2011;2(2):265–268.
    1. Wong L. Attitudes towards dysmenorrhea, impact and treatment seeking among adolescent girls: a rural school-based survey. Aust J Rural Health. 2011;19:218–223.
    1. Burnett MA, Antao V, Black A, et al. Prevalence of primary dysmenorrhea in Canada. J Obstet Gynaecol Can. 2005;27(8):765–770.
    1. Al-Kindi R, Bulushi A. prevalence and impact of dysmenorrhea among Omani high school students. Sultan Qaboos Univ Med J. 2011;11(4):485–491.
    1. Al Asadi J, Abdul Qadir R. Dysmenorrhea and its impact on daily activities among secondary school students in Basra, Iraq. J Fac Med Baghdad. 2013;55(4):339–344.
    1. Santina T, Wehbe N, Ziade F. Exploring dysmenorrhea and menstrual experiences among Lebanese female adolescents. EMHJ. 2012;18(8):857–863.
    1. Ibrahim N, AlGhamdi M, Al-Shaibani A, et al. Dysmenorrhea among female medical students in King Abdulaziz University: prevalence, predictors and outcome. Pak J Med Sci. 2015;31(6):1312–1317.
    1. Mohamed E. Epidemiology of dysmenorrhea among adolescent students in Assiut City, Egypt. Life Sci J. 2012;9(1):348–353.
    1. Osman H, El-Houfey A. Prevalence of dysmenorrhea and its impact on quality of life among nursing students at Assuit University, Egypt. IOSR-JNHS. 2016;5(1):8–16.
    1. El-Gilany A, Badawi K, El-Fedawy S. Epidemiology of dysmenorrhea among adolescent students in Mansoura, Egypt. East Mediterr Health J. 2005;11(1):155–163.
    1. Mohamed H, Mansour S. The effect of dysmenorrhea on quality of life of technical secondary schools girls. Med J Cairo Univ. 2013;81(2):83–90.
    1. Grandi G, Ferrari S, Xholli A, et al. Prevalence of menstrual pain in young women: what is dysmenorrhea? J Pain Res. 2012;5:169–174.
    1. Banikarim C, Chacko R, Kelder H. Prevalence and impact of dysmenorrhea on Hispanic female adolescents. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2000;154:1226–1229.
    1. Omidvar SH, Begum KH. Menstrual pattern among unmarried women from south India. J Nat Sci Biol Med. 2011;2(2):174–179.
    1. Parveen N, Majeed R, Rajar M. Familial predisposition of dysmenorrhea among medical students. Pak J Med Sci. 2009;25(5):857–860.
    1. Daley A. The role of exercise in the treatment of menstrual disorders: the evidence. Br J Gen Pract. 2009;59(561):241–242.
    1. Hillen I, Grbavac L, Johnston J, Straton JA, Keogh JM. Primary dysmenorrhea in young Western Australian women: prevalence, impact and knowledge of treatment. J Adolesc Health. 1999;25:40–45.
    1. Dawood M. Primary dysmenorrhea: advances in pathogenesis and management. Obstet Gynecol. 2006;108(2):428–441.
    1. Ylikorkala O, Dawood MY. New concepts in dysmenorrhea. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 1978;130:833–847.
    1. Pickles VR, Hall WJ, Best FA, Smith GN. Prostaglandin in endometrium and menstrual fluid from normal and dysmenorrhoeic subjects. J Obstet Gynaecol Br Commonw. 1965;72:185–192.
    1. Csapo AI, Pinto-Dantas CR. The cyclic activity of the non-pregnant human uterus: a new method for recording intrauterine pressure. Fertil Steril. 1966;17:34–38.
    1. Kane SV, Sable K, Hanauer SB. The menstrual cycle and its effect on inflammatory bowel disease and irritable bowel syndrome: a prevalence study. Am J Gastroenterol. 1998;93(10):1867–1872.
    1. Wong LP, Khoo EM. Menstrual-related attitudes and symptoms among multi-racial Asian adolescent females. Int J Behav Med. 2011;18(3):246–253.
    1. Whitehead WE, Cheskin LJ, Heller BR, et al. Evidence for exacerbation of irritable bowel syndrome during menses. Gastroenterology. 1990;98(6):1485–1489.
    1. Bernstein M, Graff L, Avery L, Palatnick C, Parnerowski K, Tarqownik LE. Gastrointestinal symptoms before and during menses in healthy women. BMC Womens Health. 2014;14:14.
    1. Baker F, Driver H, Rogers G, Paiker J, Mitchell D. High nocturnal body temperatures and disturbed sleep in women with primary dysmenorrhea. Am J Physiol. 1999;277(6 Pt 1):E1013–E1021.
    1. Marjoribanks J, Proctor ML, Farquhar C. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for primary dysmenorrhea. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2003;4:CD001751.
    1. Johnson J. Level of knowledge among adolescent girls regarding effective treatment for dysmenorrhea. J Adolesc Health Care. 1988;9(5):398–402.
    1. Chang T, Chen C. Study of menstrual attitudes and distress among post-menarcheal female students in Hualien County. J Nurs Res. 2009;17:20–29.
    1. Akin M, Weingand K, Hengehold D, Goodale MB, Hinkle RT, Smith RP. Continuous low level topical heat in the treatment of dysmenorrhea. Obstet Gynecol. 2001;97(3):343–349.
    1. Klein R, Litt F. Epidemiology adolescent dysmenorrhea. Pediatrics. 1981;68(5):661–664.
    1. Wenger AF. Cultural meaning of symptoms. Holist Nurs Pract. 1993;7(2):22–35.

Source: PubMed

Patrocinadores e Colaboradores

Condições médicas

Intervenções de drogas

3
Se inscrever