Survey study, 2010
Do girls with intellectual disability get different PMS symptoms?
Girls with intellectual disability and those without had similar PMS symptoms, but girls with intellectual disability had more variation in when they started menstruating. This is a very small study of only 31 pairs, so we cannot be sure these findings apply more widely.
What they did
Researchers surveyed and interviewed 31 girls with intellectual disability and 31 girls without intellectual disability, all aged 14-18 in Bosnia and Herzegovina. They asked each group about their age when menstruation began and what PMS symptoms they experienced.
What they found
Girls with intellectual disability showed greater variation in the age when they started menstruating compared to girls without intellectual disability. The symptoms of premenstrual syndrome were almost equally distributed in both groups. Many girls with intellectual disability lacked knowledge about menstruation.
What it means for you
Girls with intellectual disability experience similar PMS symptoms to other girls and need the same care and education. However, this study is very small (only 31 girls in each group) and from one country only, so we cannot be confident the findings apply more broadly. Girls with intellectual disability need better education about menstruation in schools.
31
Girls with intellectual disability
31
Girls without intellectual disability
14-18
Age range in years
About the study
- Original title
- Age at menarche and premenstrual syndrome in adolescent girls with intellectual disability in Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Authors
- Ibralic I, Sinanovic O, Memisevic H
- Journal
- Research in developmental disabilities
- Year
- 2010
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 31
- What was tested
- None
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2010.02.004
Topics
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