Abstract
Background: Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) was frequent among young women worldwide. The prevalence of PMS has been reported in 20 to 32 % of premenopausal and 30-40% of the reproductive female population. A little is known about it among Saudi university students.
Aim: To estimate Premenstrual Syndrome prevalence among Female medical and nursing students at Taibah University, Madinah, Saudi Arabia and to identify its associated predictors.
Materials and Methods: Across sectional study was conducted over 600 Medical & Nursing students over the academic year of 2017/2018. An electronic Questionnaire has been used for data collection. The PMS was assessed by the PMS scale with its lowest score of 42 and highest score of 210. The prevalence of PMS was estimated and related to students' characteristics. For statistical analyses purposes, Univariate analyses and predictive regression analyses has been used.
Results: The final rate of response rate was 87.3%. PMS prevalence in the respondents (N=524) female students was 50.2% (263/524; 95% CI=45.8-54.6%). The prevalence was varied by students' characteristics. The predictors of PMS in this study were the age at menarche, daily sleeping hours and dietary habit. Students with their age at menarche between 12-13 years showed significant reduced by 45% among (OR=0.55; 95% CI=0.35-0.92), the same is also applies among those with 5-8 sleeping hours per day (OR=0.50; 95% CI=0.27-0.99). Daily consumption of chocolate, caffeine and diary food, however, were associated with increased risk.
Conclusion: A considerable high prevalence of PMS was found among the studied students. Health education, medical treatment and counseling services should be available at health care facilities.