Department of Social Medicine and Health Management, XiangYa School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, XiangYa School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, China.
BMJ Open. 2019 Sep 18;9(9):e026813. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-026813.
To explore the prevalence of primary dysmenorrhea (PD), the characteristics of PD and self-care strategies for managing PD among Chinese college girls.
Cross-sectional study.
Changsha, China.
A total of 2555 college girls were recruited using multistage cluster random sampling.
A self-report questionnaire was used to measure sociodemographic information, characteristics of PD and self-care strategies for managing PD. Additionally, a Visual Analogue Scale was used to measure pain severity.
Of the 2555 girls, 1306 had experienced PD, representing a 51.1% prevalence. In addition, the prevalence rates of mild, moderate and severe pain in PD were 18.1%, 27.7% and 5.4%, respectively. The most common symptoms associated with PD were cramps (96.9%), weakness (70.0%), backache (65.1%), facial blemishes (55.3%) and irritability (55.3%). Commonly used self-care strategies for managing PD comprised reducing physical activity (94.6%), keeping warm (84.6%), communicating dysmenorrhea with friends or classmates (79.0%), drinking warm beverages (75.7%) and avoiding cold drinks and foods (74.2%). In addition, only 34.8% self-medicated with Western medicine (15.6%), traditional Chinese medicine (8.6%), or both (10.6%). Medical advice was sought by 27.4% of subjects from a Western medical doctor (10.3%), a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine (13.6%), or both (3.5%). Girls who had greater pain severity were more likely to be self-medicated (OR=7.01; 95% CI 4.50 to 10.91), use complementary therapies (OR=2.64; 95% CI 1.70 to 4.10) and seek medical advice (OR=5.93; 95% CI 3.80 to 9.24).
PD is highly prevalent among Chinese college girls, with a high burden of symptoms. In addition, these girls are most likely to change their lifestyle, communicate dysmenorrhea with friends or mothers, use heat therapy and engage in self-talk, but less likely to self-medicate or seek medical advice for managing PD.
探讨中国女大学生原发性痛经（PD）的患病率、PD 特征以及自我护理策略。
横断面研究。
中国长沙。
采用多阶段整群随机抽样方法，共招募 2555 名女大学生。
使用自报问卷测量社会人口学信息、PD 特征和管理 PD 的自我护理策略。此外，还使用视觉模拟评分法测量疼痛严重程度。
在 2555 名女生中，1306 名有 PD 经历，患病率为 51.1%。此外，PD 轻度、中度和重度疼痛的患病率分别为 18.1%、27.7%和 5.4%。与 PD 相关的最常见症状为痉挛（96.9%）、乏力（70.0%）、背痛（65.1%）、面部瑕疵（55.3%）和易怒（55.3%）。管理 PD 常用的自我护理策略包括减少体力活动（94.6%）、保暖（84.6%）、与朋友或同学交流痛经（79.0%）、饮用热饮（75.7%）和避免冷饮和食物（74.2%）。此外，仅有 34.8%的人自服西药（15.6%）、中药（8.6%）或两者（10.6%）。27.4%的女生向西医（10.3%）、中医（13.6%）或两者（3.5%）医生寻求医疗建议。疼痛程度较重的女生更有可能自服药物（OR=7.01；95%CI 4.50 至 10.91）、使用补充疗法（OR=2.64；95%CI 1.70 至 4.10）和寻求医疗建议（OR=5.93；95%CI 3.80 至 9.24）。
PD 在中国女大学生中患病率较高，症状负担较重。此外，这些女生最有可能改变生活方式，与朋友或母亲交流痛经，使用热疗和自我对话，但不太可能自行用药或寻求医疗建议来管理 PD。
