Publication:

Prevalence and treatment patterns of dysmenorrhea among female medical students: a questionnaire based study at KIMS, Koppal

Background Dysmenorrhea is a common gynaecological condition which causes physical pain, affects mental well-being and quality of life. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the prevalence, severity and the treatment patterns of primary dysmenorrhea among female medical students.

Methods The present study was a prospective, questionnaire based study conducted during March-April 2020 at KIMS, Koppal. The willing participants were given a time period of 30 minutes to fill the questionnaire.

Results Among the total of 211 female medical students, 180 students were suffering from dysmenorrhea. Almost 78.3% of those suffering from dysmenorrhea belonged to the age group of 19-21 years. Most of the students suffering from dysmenorrhea achieved menarche at the age of 13-14 years.  A majority (48.8%)  of the dysmenorrhic females had dysmenorrhea of mild degree. 73.8% of dysmenorrhic females did not seek any medical advice for the management of the symptoms of dysmenorrhea. 76 (42.2%) of the dysmenorrhic participant females missed their classes due to the symptoms of dysmenorrhea. The most favoured drug for the management of the symptoms of dysmenorrhea was the combination of mefenamic acid and dicyclomine (56.8%). 56.6% of the subjects utilized pharmacological measures, while the rest 43.3% utilized non-pharmacological measures for the relief from the symptoms of dysmenorrhea.

Conclusions The present study recognized that dysmenorrhea is a common menstrual disorder among young females. There should be an effort at mass education of the young females regarding the management of dysmenorrhea.