Management of Primary Dysmenorrhea among University Students in the South of Spain and Family Influence

María Laura Parra-Fernández, María Dolores Onieva-Zafra, Ana Abreu-Sánchez, Juan Diego Ramos-Pichardo, María Teresa Iglesias-López and Elia Fernández-Martínez
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María Laura Parra-Fernández: Department of Nursing, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Ciudad Real, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain
María Dolores Onieva-Zafra: Department of Nursing, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Ciudad Real, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain
Ana Abreu-Sánchez: Department of Nursing, University of Huelva, 21071 Huelva, Spain
Juan Diego Ramos-Pichardo: Department of Nursing, University of Huelva, 21071 Huelva, Spain
María Teresa Iglesias-López: Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Francisco de Vitoria, Crta. Pozuelo-Majadahonda Km 1,800, 28223 Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, Spain
Elia Fernández-Martínez: Department of Nursing, University of Huelva, 21071 Huelva, Spain

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 15, 1-13

Abstract: The present study analyses the management of primary dysmenorrhea by university students in the south of Spain. In this cross-sectional observational study, 224 women participated, using an ad hoc self-report questionnaire about menstrual pain and self-care and including sociodemographic and gynecological variables. Some 76.8% of participants consumed analgesics and the majority self-medicated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) without consulting a health professional, with a correlation between pain intensity and the number of pills ingested during menstruation ( r = 0.151, p < 0.05). The higher proportion of women who found their analgesia effective were those who took medication after being prescribed by a health care provider (60.8%) compared to those who self-medicated (40%; p < 0.01). Only 43.8% employed non-pharmaceutical methods, most commonly antalgic positions, massages and local heat. These choices were not related to the intensity of menstrual pain nor with the severity of the dysmenorrhea, nor did these most common methods prove to be the most effective. However, a higher percentage of women using non-pharmacological methods was identified in women with family members suffering from dysmenorrhea (73.2%) compared to those without (60%; p = 0.040), which may indicate that the choice of remedies is more related to learning self-care in the family context. This study identifies the need for education on self-care and management of menstrual pain.

Keywords: dysmenorrhea; menstrual pain; self-care (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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