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Meta-Analysis
. 2019 Mar;64(2):293-304.
doi: 10.1007/s00038-019-01209-0. Epub 2019 Feb 10.

Puberty and menstruation knowledge among young adolescents in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review

Ernestina Coast  1 , Samantha R Lattof  2 , Joe Strong  2
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Puberty and menstruation knowledge among young adolescents in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review

Ernestina Coast et al. Int J Public Health. 2019 Mar.

Abstract

Objectives: This study presents a scoping review of evidence relating to knowledge and experiences of puberty and menstruation among females aged 10-14 years in low- and middle-income countries.

Methods: Forty-four items from 12 countries were identified from a systematic scoping review and screening of 8083 items. Included studies were quality assessed.

Results: A majority (40/44) of studies used school-based samples, and fifteen studies reported on interventions. Girls had inadequate knowledge about menstruation; menarche as a trigger for girls learning about menstruation was common. Adolescents struggled with menstrual hygiene. Negative emotions were associated with menarche and menstrual management. A minority of studies dealt explicitly with puberty. Most girls obtained information about menstruation and/or puberty from their mothers, although mothers were not necessarily girls' preferred source for learning about these topics.

Conclusions: Young adolescent girls are under-prepared for puberty and menstruation. Predominantly school-based studies mean we know little about young out-of-school adolescents. The evidence base lags behind the rise in interest from practitioners as well as the development (and evaluation) of puberty and/or menstruation interventions.

Keywords: Adolescence; Menarche; Menstruation; Puberty; Scoping review.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Populations, interventions, comparators, outcomes, and setting criteria for inclusion
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Search and screening results for ISI Web of Science (WoS), JSTOR, Department for International Development Research for Development (DFID R4D), Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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