---
title: How common are period symptoms in teenage girls? | Niyora
description: Period pain is very common, affecting 44 to 64% of girls, while pain before the period is less common. Symptoms vary widely between girls and often improve af
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/symptoms-related-to-menstruation-in-adolescent-swiss-girls-a-longitudinal-study-1985/
---

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- How common are period symptoms in teenage girls?

Cohort study, 1985

# How common are period symptoms in teenage girls?

Period pain is very common, affecting 44 to 64% of girls, while pain before the period is less common. Symptoms vary widely between girls and often improve after the first few years of having periods.

 Moderate study design

140 Swiss girls from around when they started their periods

## What they did

They followed 140 Swiss girls from around when they started menstruating, tracking which symptoms they had at different ages over several years.

## What they found

Dysmenorrhoea (period pain or cramping) occurred in 44 to 64%, with occasional severe pain being most common (20 to 35%). Premenstrual abdominal pain happened in 9 to 28%. Premenstrual headaches were rare (0 to 5%), while headaches during menstruation were 2 to 11%. Other symptoms included general discomfort (1 to 10%) and premenstrual vaginal discharge (10 to 22%). Dysmenorrhoea was most common in the first three years after starting periods, then decreased. Severe symptoms were reported more often than mild ones.

## What it means for you

Period pain is extremely common in teenagers but often improves over time. Experiences vary greatly between girls. This study is from 1985 in Switzerland, so findings may not reflect current generations or other populations.

140

girls

44-64%

had dysmenorrhoea

20-35%

reported occasional severe dysmenorrhoea

## About the study

Original title Symptoms related to menstruation in adolescent Swiss girls: a longitudinal study Authors Flug D, Largo RH, Prader A Journal Annals of human biology Year 1985 Study design Cohort study Participants 140 What was tested None - observational longitudinal study Read the paper [doi.org/10.1080/03014468500007651](https://doi.org/10.1080/03014468500007651)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Dysmenorrhea and period pain](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-dysmenorrhea/)[Pain and headache](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-pain/)[Adolescents and young people](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-adolescents/)

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