PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME: PREVALENCE IN STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALABAR, NIGERIA

The prevalence and frequency of symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) was assessed in female undergraduate students of the University of Calabar. A survey of a consecutive sample of 200 nulliparous subjects aged between 16 and 31 years revealed that 85.5% of them regularly experienced symptoms suggestive of PMS. The commonest symptoms were lower abdominal pain, pimples/puffy face, tender/painfully engorged breast and depression/tension representing 86%, 67% 63%, and 55% respectively. The least frequent symptoms were back ache and common cold which was seen in 14% and 11% of the subjects respectively. 42% of the subjects complained of severe abdominal pain. This group had depression/tension as the most frequently occurring symptom (87%), while pimples/ puffy face was most frequently seen in those with mild, moderate and no abdominal discomfort.. There was an association between severity of abdominal discomfort and symptoms experienced by subjects (p<0.01). Similarly, severity of abdominal discomfort was associated with mean body weight of subjects (P<0.02) but not with body temperature.

Keywords
premenstrual syndrome, abdominal discomfort, prevalence depression, Calabar