Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Jul;37(4):e13264.
doi: 10.1111/jar.13264.

Menstrual education programs for girls and young women with intellectual and developmental disabilities: A systematic review

Kristina N Randall  1 , Casey S Hopkins  2 , Hannah Drew  3
Affiliations

Menstrual education programs for girls and young women with intellectual and developmental disabilities: A systematic review

Kristina N Randall et al. J Appl Res Intellect Disabil. 2024 Jul.

Abstract

Background: Providing menstrual education and guidance for menstrual management for girls and young women with intellectual disabilities is recommended to ensure smooth pubertal transitions and to support menstrual self-agency.

Method: The purpose of this systematic review is to explore menstrual education interventions for girls and young women with intellectual disabilities.

Results: Nine studies were included. Interventions were provided in small groups (n = 4) and individually (n = 5). Most studies used dolls (n = 7) and task analysis (n = 7) to teach pad-replacement skills. All reported significant improvements in participant skills and/or knowledge following the intervention. Only one study addressed self-agency and self-esteem as an outcome of the intervention. Menstrual education for girls and young women with intellectual disabilities is largely focused on pad-replacement skills.

Conclusion: Further research is needed to understand the impact of menstrual health and hygiene education on variables apart from skill improvement such as self-agency and long-term health outcomes related to menstrual health.

Keywords: disabilities; intervention; menstruation or period; or teens; young adults.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

REFERENCES

    1. Advocates for Youth (2016). Sexual health education for young people with disabilities: Research and resources for educators. https://www.advocatesforyouth.org/wpcontent/uploads/2016/02/SHE‐Young‐Pe...
    1. Aktaş, G., & Öncü, E. (2022). Comparison of menstrual care skills training programs provided to girls with intellectual disabilities by a healthcare professional and caregivers: A randomized control trial. Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, 27, 746–761. https://doi.org/10.1177/17446295221101759
    1. Altundağ, S., & Çalbayram, N. Ç. (2016). Teaching menstrual care skills to intellectually disabled female students. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 25, 1962–1968. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.13215
    1. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' Committee on Clinical Consensus–Gynecology. (2022). General approaches to medical management of menstrual suppression: ACOG clinical consensus No. 3. Obstetrics and Gynecology, 140(3), 528–541. https://doi.org/10.1097/AOG.0000000000004899
    1. Ariyanti, T. D., & Royanto, L. R. M. (2017). The effectiveness of social stories and video modeling in improving self‐care in female adolescents with mild intellectual disabilities during menstrual periods. Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research, 135, 190–199. https://doi.org/10.2991/iciap-17.2018.16

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources