Menstrual disorders among grade twelve adolescent school girls in Seethawaka Educational Division

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Menstrual problems are common among adolescent girls. Uncorrected menstrual problems may have serious pathological consequences and can adversely affect the daily routine. Seeking care on menstrual morbidities by adolescents is low worldwide. OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of menstrual disorders, their association with daily activities, sources of information and health seeking behaviour among grade twelve girls. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using a self-administered questionnaire. All grade twelve female students (n=348) attending government schools in Seethawaka Educational Division were studied in 2013. RESULTS: Mean age at menarche was 12.37 (SD=1.37) years. Four (1.2%) cases of precocious puberty and 1 (0.3%) case of delayed puberty were observed. Menstrual disorders reported among study participants were; dysmenorrheal 234(67.2%), irregular cycles 52(14.9%), premenstrual syndrome (PMS) 51(14.7%), menorrhagia 88/337(26.1%), hypomenorrhoea 29/337(8.6%), polymenorrohea 10/187(5.3%) and oligomenorrhoea 5/187(2.7%). Dysmenorrhoea and PMS were significantly associated with disturbance to daily activities (p<0.001). Main source of information was mother (n=282, 83.9%) where as friends and sisters were second and third respectively. Almost an equal preference was observed for both male and female health workers when seeking information. A larger proportion of girls with menstrual problems (46.7%; n=157) perceived those as normal phenomena. More than three quarters did not seek proper treatment (87.7%, n=243). Only 32(11.5%) sought allopathic treatment for menstrual cycle problems. CONCLUSIONS: Menstrual disorders were common among this study population. Knowledge and utilization of available reproductive health services were very low. Further research to explore need of context-specific health education measures and adolescent friendly healthcare services is recommended.