--- title: How common is period pain in adolescent Asian girls and what does it affect? description: Three-quarters of adolescent girls in Malaysia had period pain. It affected their concentration in class for over half, limited their social activities for ha url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/dysmenorrhea-in-a-multiethnic-population-of-adolescent-asian-girls-2010/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - How common is period pain in adolescent Asian girls and what does it affect? Survey study, 2010 # How common is period pain in adolescent Asian girls and what does it affect? Three-quarters of adolescent girls in Malaysia had period pain. It affected their concentration in class for over half, limited their social activities for half, caused about one in five to miss school, and caused poor school performance in one in eight. Early or limited evidence 1092 adolescent girls across three ethnic groups in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia ## What they did Researchers asked 1092 girls from 15 secondary schools in Malaysia across three ethnic groups about period pain and how it affected their lives. ## What they found 74.5% of girls who had started their period experienced period pain. Of those with pain: 51.7% said it affected their concentration at school, 50.2% said it limited their social activities, 21.5% said they missed school, and 12.0% said it caused poor school performance. Only 12.0% had seen a doctor about it, and 53.3% did nothing. The impact varied between ethnic groups. ## What it means for you Period pain is extremely common in teenage girls in Malaysia and significantly affects school and social life. Most girls do not see a doctor or take action. The main limit is that this only studied girls in Malaysia, so results may differ elsewhere. 74.5% experienced period pain 51.7% pain affected concentration in class 12.0% had consulted a physician ## About the study Original title Dysmenorrhea in a multiethnic population of adolescent Asian girls Authors Wong LP, Khoo EM Journal International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics Year 2010 Study design Survey study Participants 1,092 Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgo.2009.09.018](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgo.2009.09.018) ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Dysmenorrhea and period pain](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-dysmenorrhea/)[Cognition, concentration and memory](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-cognition/)[Students and academic performance](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-education/)[Adolescents and young people](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-adolescents/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Systematic review, 2025 Does teaching adolescent girls about their menstrual cycle and health help reduce period pain and PMS? Survey study, 2025 How common are painful periods, PMS, and heavy bleeding in teenage girls in Sudan? Survey study, 2023 How common are PMS and PMDD among college girls, and what are their symptoms? Survey study, 2022 How common is PMS in university students and what helps them cope with symptoms? Cohort study, 2006 How should severe period pain in teenagers be treated? Survey study, 2026 Do young women with PMS search online for health information more and develop health anxiety from it? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗