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Characteristics of the menstrual cycle in 13-year-old Flemish girls and the impact of menstrual symptoms on social life
- Source :
- European Journal of Pediatrics. 175:623-630
- Publication Year :
- 2015
- Publisher :
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2015.
-
Abstract
- This study aimed to investigate the characteristics of symptoms related to the menstrual cycle and their impact on social activities in young teenage girls. Between March and June 2009, all girls born in 1996 who were residents of eight regions in Flanders (Belgium) received a semi-structured questionnaire, including questions about the age of menarche, characteristics of the menstrual cycle, and its impact on social activities. Participants were 792 13-year-old girls (15.7 % of the target population). Out of 363 (47.2 % of participants) postmenarcheal girls, 41.6 % (95 % confidence interval (CI) 36.4-47.0 %) reported painful menstruations. The proportion of girls with painful menstrual periods decreased approximately 16 % with each year the age at menarche increased (relative risk (RR) = 0.84; 0.73-0.98; p 0.05) and was positively correlated with the amount of blood loss (RR = 0.33; 0.16-0.67; p 0.05 when little and 1.85; 1.49-2.31; p 0.001 when abundant, compared to average). One in four (25.4 %) postmenarcheal girls indicated a negative impact of menstruation on social activities, but this proportion was significantly higher in girls who experienced menstruation as painful (41.3 %) compared to those who did not (14.2 %).Early menstrual complaints are common in young adolescent girls and the likelihood of pain increased significantly with lower menarcheal age. What is Known? • Menstrual cycle-related symptoms may negatively interfere with school absence and social activities. • Early menarche and severe dysmenorrhea are correlated with endometriosis. What is New? • In this large population-based study on the characteristics of the menstrual cycle in young teenage girls at or shortly after menarche, painful menstruation was highly prevalent (41.7 %), but related school absenteeism was low (3.2 %). The likelihood of pain increased significantly with lower menarcheal age. • The findings support the need for a systematic evaluation of the characteristics of the menstrual cycle shortly after menarche.
- Subjects :
- medicine.medical_specialty
Adolescent
Cross-sectional study
media_common.quotation_subject
Social Skills
Menstruation
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Belgium
Quality of life
Surveys and Questionnaires
Prevalence
Humans
Medicine
030212 general & internal medicine
Child
Menstrual Cycle
Menstruation Disturbances
Menstrual cycle
media_common
Gynecology
Schools
030219 obstetrics & reproductive medicine
business.industry
language.human_language
Confidence interval
Flemish
Cross-Sectional Studies
Relative risk
Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health
Quality of Life
Menarche
language
Female
business
Demography
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 14321076 and 03406199
- Volume :
- 175
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- European Journal of Pediatrics
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....727fe3638ef2827353f1f709c0d68178
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-015-2681-7