A Study to Identify the Prevalence of Dysmenorrhea and Its Impact on Quality of Life and Effectiveness of An Aerobic Exercise Package on Primary Dysmenorrhea among Collegiate Female Students of Surat

Abstract

ABSTRACT newlineIntroduction: newlinePrimary dysmenorrhea is the most common gynaecological complaint among adolescent and young adult females, and its main feature is cramping lower abdominal pain that is along with physical, emotional and psychosocial disturbances. Although widespread, dysmenorrhea is underreported and poorly managed, contributing to poor academic performance, social withdrawal, and reduced quality of life. Hence, aerobic exercises are suggested as a non-pharmacological approach due to their physiological effects increased endorphin release, enhanced pelvic blood circulation, altered prostaglandin activity, and increased tolerance for pain. Specifically, this study aimed to establish prevalence of primary dysmenorrhea and quality of life and determine the efficacy of a regular aerobic exercise program on pain reduction and quality life improvements. newlineMethodology: newlineThe study was a quantitative randomized controlled trial conducted in two sequential phases: Phase I and Phase II. Phase one was a cross-sectional survey conducted to get prevalence estimates of primary dysmenorrhea, and phase two was an experimental (true experiment) study aimed at assessing the effect of an intervention aerobic exercise intervention. Non medical female college students in the age group of 17 22 years were randomly selected by a computerized random sampling technique. The colleges were assigned to the experimental and control groups, to reduce selection bias. The inclusion criterion was a normal menstrual cycle length of 21 34 days. The exclusion criteria were: (a) participants with a history of gynecological, pelvic, or chronic medical disorders, (b) participants involved in regular structured physical activity, and (c) participants with medical restrictions for physical activities. Ethical clearance was sought from PPSU Ethical Review Committee (Approval No. Data collection included a self- administered questionnaire consisting of items on menstrual characteristics and dysmenorrhea and a standardized quality of life ra