Abstract
Background: Primary dysmenorrhea is the most common gynecological complaint among female adolescents. This condition can cause significant disruptions in the quality of life and daily activities of students. In Jeddah, no current studies have explored the misuse of over-the-counter medications to manage dysmenorrhea among female students in secondary schools.
Subjects and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 400 governmental secondary school female students in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, were interviewed from October 2018 to February 2019 using interviewer-administered questionnaire. Descriptive and analytical statistics were used to describe and assess the association between variables.
Main Results: Results revealed that 84.5% of students had dysmenorrhea whereas 56.3% of them had experienced >= 2 impacts, having the limited daily activity (9.4%) and emotional instability (6.5%) as the most common reported effects. More than two third (74.5%) of the students used non-pharmacological management as a primary option. Paracetamol (63.6%) and NSAIDs (19.1%) were the most commonly used medications to manage dysmenorrhea. Logistic regression showed that the level of activity was the main predictor of dysmenorrhea (OR= 7.69, P=0.0871).
Conclusion and Recommendations: Overall, this study revealed that there was a high prevalence of dysmenorrhea, and there was inadequate level of awareness among students about the possible side effects associated with the use of over-the-counter medication, implying that students must be exposed to health care and educational program to improve their knowledge and proper handling practice of dysmenorrhea. Further studies and evidence-based findings are needed to validate the effectiveness of physical activity in managing the dysmenorrhea.