Epidemiology of dysmenorrhea among workers in Upper Egypt; A cross sectional study

Research Abstract

Objective: To investigate the epidemiology of dysmenorrhea amongst women in two textile factories in Beni-Suef, Egypt compared to non-working controls. Study design: A cross sectional study. Setting: Beni-Suef, Egypt. Materials and methods: The study was conducted on 554 working women in two textile factories in Beni-Suef and 1081 non-working women, matched for age and residence. A structured questionnaire was used and a team of data collectors interviewed the women. The questionnaire included questions about the socio-demographic characteristics of women, history of dysmenorrhea during the past 12 months, associating symptoms, pain relief methods, and sources of information. Results: The study reported higher rates of dysmenorrhea during the past 12 months (94.6%) amongst the working women, compared to their controls (90.7%) (p < 0.05). Backaches, generalized aching and nervousness were the most likely symptoms reported with menstruation72.2%, 56.3% and 41% respectively. More than half of the working women who experienced dysmenorrhea reported drinking herbal fluids and taking analgesics to alleviate their symptoms, while 43% had to take sick leaves due to their condition. Women in the study group resorted mostly to family members to get information about menstruation and menstrual disturbances. Conclusions: Dysmenorrhea is highly prevalent among women working in the textile factories in Beni-Suef. Further research should focus on the adaptive strategies used by women to avoid the negative impacts of dysmenorrhea. Structuring occupational health programs that handle the menstrual disorders amongst the working women, especially in the industrial settings, should be considered.

Research Keywords

Dysmenorrhea, Textile factories, working women