Publication:

Age at menarche and the menstrual pattern of secondary school adolescents in central India

Background Population studies on characteristics of menstrual cycles are scarce. Knowledge on this variability is necessary for patient education and to guide clinical evaluation.

Methods A cross sectional study was conducted and 622 school girls were selected randomly. A pretested questionnaire was used to gather data.

Results Mean age of participants was 16.9 ± 1 years. About 92.2% had attained menarche. Probit analysis of the status-quo data yielded median age at menarche of 14.8 (13.9-15.3) years and by recall method to be 15.8 ± 1 years. The mean age at menarche was, significantly, 0.3 years younger for urban females compared with rural ones. Cycle length between 21-35 days was observed in 70.3% of the girls. Mean duration of flow was 4 ± 1.3 days. Menstrual cycles were irregular in 42.8% of the subjects. Overall prevalence of dysmenorrhoea was 72%. and of PMS was 75.4%.

Conclusions Age of menarche was found to be significantly delayed. Considerable number of students complained of dysmenorrhoea and premenstrual symptoms.