Treatment of primary dysmenorrhea with diclofenac sodium.

The efficacy of diclofenac sodium was investigated in the painful symptoms of primary dysmenorrhea and in reducing menstrual bleeding. Thirty-five nulliparous women (17-28 yr of age) were included in a double-blind cross-over study for four menstrual periods, two periods with diclofenac sodium and two periods with placebo. The diclofenac sodium treatment (total of 58 periods) reduced the pain significantly in comparison with placebo (57 periods), as evaluated by subjective rating (P less than 0.001) and by a 6-point scale of pain intensity (P less than 0.05). Also the amount of menstrual bleeding was significantly reduced as measured by subjective rating (P less than 0.001) and by counting the number of sanitary pads used (P less than 0.05). The results indicate that diclofenac sodium in low dose (about 75 mg daily) is effective not only in reducing the pain at menstruation, but also the bleeding.