Experience of dysmenorrhea among a group of physical therapy students from Cairo University: an exploratory study

Figures & data

Table 1 Participants’ related menstruation major features

Menstruation affective symptoms (n=269)
Mood swings	228 (84.8%)
Fatigue	220 (81.8%)
Anxiety	162 (60.2%)
Bloated abdominal feeling	138 (51.3%)
Sadness	129 (47.9%)
Change in sleeping patterns	105 (39.03%)
Loss of appetite	94 (34.9%)
Decrease in concentration	76 (28.3%)
Persistent irritability	76 (27.3%)
Enhanced appetite	63 (23.4%)
Source of knowledge about menstruation (n=269)
Mothers	198 (73.6%)
Nobody	30 (11.2%)
Others (school teacher or based on college study)	18 (6.7%)
Friend/sibling	12 (4.46%)
Physician/nurse	11 (4.08%)
Dysmenorrhea somatic symptoms (n=226)
Dizziness	109 (48.2%)
Diarrhea	89 (38.4%)
Nausea	68 (30.1%)
Feeling your heart pound or race	51 (22.6%)
Sweating	48 (21.2%)
Constipation	48 (21.2%)
Shortness of breathing	43 (19.02%)
Indigestion	38 (16.8%)
Fainting	30 (13.3%)
Home remedies used to relief menstrual pain (n=226)
Drink hot liquids	128 (56.6%)
Rest	113 (50%)
Hot application	77 (34.1%)
None	36 (15.9%)
Massage	34 (15.04%)
Any form of exercise (eg, walking)	32 (14.2%)
Herbs	22 (9.7%)
Pain pattern to the analgesic use (n=141)
No relief	18 (12.8%)
Minimal relief	20 (14.2%)
Complete relief	26 (18.4%)
Mild relief	77 (54.6%)

Note: Data are presented as n (%).

Table 2 Prevalence of menarche, regular cycles, duration, and amount of menstrual cycle based on the presence of menstrual pain

Menstrual cycle characteristics		Participants with dysmenorrhea (n=226)	Participants without dysmenorrhea (n=43)	t-value	p-value
Menarche (age, years), mean (±SD)		12.9 (1.6)	12.95 (1.5)	0.37	0.71
Regular cycle n (%)		166 (73.4%)	38 (88.3%)		0.02*,a
Length of menses flow (days), mean (±SD)		5.1 (1.2)	5.6 (1.2)	2.45	0.02*
Amount of menses	Drops	5 (2.2%)	1 (2.3%)	−0.11	0.92
	Average	175 (77.4%)	35 (81.4%)
	Heavy	37 (16.3%)	7 (16.2%)
Length of menstrual cycle (days), mean (±SD)		29.1 (4.4)	27.6 (3.9)	−1.89	0.06

Note:

* p<0.05 is considered significant.

a Mann–Whitney U test with z value=−2.32.

Abbreviation: SD, standard deviation.

Table 3 VAS for different locations in the body

Pain location	Mean (±SD)	Median	IQR (Q3–Q1)
Abdominal	4.76 (3.12)	5.00	7.00–2.00
Back	5.24 (5.64)	5.00	7.00–3.00
Breast	1.41 (2.28)	0.00	3.00–0.00
Inner thighs	3.07 (3.18)	2.00	5.50–0.00
Knees	2.04 (2.89)	0.00	4.00–0.00
Hips	2.23 (2.93)	0.00	5.00–0.00
Headache	2.31 (2.79)	1.00	4.00–0.00

Abbreviations: VAS, visual analog scale; SD, standard deviation; IQR, interquartile range.