Background: Menstruation and related problems are difficult issues for adolescent girls and are a common reason for consulting healthcare providers. Objectives: To study age at menarche and menstrual problems among school girls in Lucknow district of north India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out in urban as well as rural schools of Lucknow district from October 2008 to September 2009. Multistage random sampling was used to select the requisite number of girls. A total of 847 school-going adolescent girls between 10 and 19 years of age were interviewed and examined. Statistical analyses were done using percentage and Chi-square test. Results: Out of 847 adolescent girls, 76.7% (650) girls had attained menarche. The overall mean age at menarche was 12.84 (1.4) years. The age at menarche and duration of menstrual flow were significantly associated with place of schools. About one-fourth of the girls in all the three age groups (10-13, 14-16 and 17-19 years) had irregular menstrual cycle. Overall, 73.7% (479/650) girls had dysmenorrhea, with 74.3% (323/435) girls in urban schools and 72.6% (156/215) girls in rural schools. There was no significant association between reproductive tract illnesses and place of schools. Conclusion: Menstruation is an important milestone for adolescent girls and menstrual problems are common among adolescent girls. So, there is a need to explain everything correctly about menstruation. It was suggested that a strong need exists for strong health educational activities among the adolescent girls, their parents, and teachers for effective management of menstrual problems among all adolescent girls.

Background:The adolescent girls are more vulnerable, particularly in developing countries including India, due to various adverse socio-cultural and economic reasons. Majority of the health problems affecting adolescent girls are preventable by promotion of hygienic practices through proper health education by the teachers.Aim:This study was designed to examine the various factors influencing the prevalence of morbidity among school-going adolescent girls of Lucknow district in north India.Materials and Methods:A cross-sectional study was carried out in urban and rural schools of Lucknow district from 2008 to 2009. Multistage random sampling was used to select the requisite number of girls. A total of 847 adolescent girls between 10 and 19 years of age were interviewed, and information regarding their socio-demographic characteristics was collected and clinical examination was carried out. Statistical analyses were done using percentage and Chi-square test.Results:Of 847 adolescent girls, around 64.8% were found to be sick at the time of the study. Significant association of morbidity was observed with caste, birth order, type of family, socioeconomic status (SES), living status with parents/guardian, and general personal hygiene (P<0.05).Conclusion:This study reveals a high prevalence of morbidity. A strong need exists for planning and programming intervention activities for health needs in the area.

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Anemia is a serious public health concern in most developing countries and the prevalence of anemia is quite high among adolescent girls.  A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out among school going adolescent girls in urban as well as rural schools of the Lucknow district, Uttar Pradesh, India from October 2008 to September 2009 with the objectives of studying the prevalence of anemia and the various socio-demographic characteristics in relation to anemia. Multistage random sampling was used to select the requisite number of girls. A total of 847 school going adolescent girls between 10-19 years of age were interviewed. Information regarding their socio-demographic characteristics was collected and the girls were also examined for presence or absence of pallor for anemia. Statistical analyses were done using percentage, Chi-square test, and odds ratio. The prevalence of anemia was found to be 55.6% and 57.9% in urban and rural school going adolescent girls respectively and  significant association of anemia  was observed with religion, caste and socio-economic status (p value<0.05). There is need to develop strategies for intensive adult education, nutrition education and dietary supplementation including anemia prophylaxis.South East Asia J Public Health | Jan-June 2012 | Vol 2 Issue 1 | 8-12 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/seajph.v2i1.15254

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