ABSTRACT
Background: Menstruation is the periodic flow of blood from the uterus through the cervix and out through the vagina, and it is also called a “period”. Menstruation occurs monthly during the years between puberty and menopause. Menstrual disorders and their symptoms can disrupt a woman’s daily life. They can also affect her ability to become pregnant. There are a number of different menstrual disorders which ranges from heavy painful periods to no periods at all. There are many variations in menstrual patterns, but in general women should be concerned when periods come fewer than twenty- one days or more than three months apart, or if they last more than ten days.
Objective: The aim of this study to assess the prevalence pattern and determinants of menstrual disorders among women of child bearing age in Benin City, Edo State.
Methodology: A cross-sectional analytical design was used for this study. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 628 women of child bearing age. A pre-tested and well-structured interviewer administered questionnaire was used to collect to collect information on socio-demographic characteristics, lifestyle information, prevalence and pattern of menstrual disorders, quality of life and health seeking behavior of women of child bearing age. Anthropometric measurements were also taken. Data was analyzed using the IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21 and statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.
Results: A total of 628 women of child bearing age participated in this study. Majority of respondents were in the age group of 20 -24 years with a mean age (± SD) = 30.79 ± 8.83; (15 – 44). A larger number 603 (96.0%) respondents by proportion consumes alcohol. Majority 524 (83.4%) of respondents are non-smokers. Five hundred seventy three (91.2%) of respondents reported that they first experienced menarche between the age of 13-15years of age. Five hundred and thirty seven (85.5%) respondents had dysmenorrhea, 423 (67.4%) had Metrorrhagia, 195 (31.1%) had Premenstrual Symptoms, 175 (27.9%) had polymenorrhagia, 91(14.5%) had 20 Amenorrhea, 69 (11.2%) had menorrhagia, 64 (10.2%) had oligomenorrhea and 18(2.9%) had polymenorrhagia. Astatistically significant association was noted between the prevalence of menstrual disorders and quality of life of participants (p<0.001). A higher proportion of women 458 (85.3%) who had menstrual disorders reported a low quality of life compared to those 10 (11.0%) who did not have any menstrual disorders.
Conclusion: the overall prevalence of menstrual disorders among women of child bearing age in this study was found to be high.
Key words: Menstrual disorders, women of child bearing age, Benin City.
