Publication: Association of menstrual cycle pattern with perceived stress among undergraduate female students in the school of health science, USM
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2026-08
Authors
Suhaimi, Nur Athirah
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Menstrual patterns and perceived stress are important indicators of women's reproductive and psychological health. This study aimed to examine menstrual patterns, assess perceived stress levels, and determine the association between menstrual characteristics and perceived stress among undergraduate female students in the School of Health Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). A cross-sectional study was conducted among 175 undergraduate female students using a self-administered questionnaire comprising sociodemographic characteristics, menstrual pattern questions, and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). Descriptive statistics and Pearson Chi-Square tests were used for data analysis, with a significance level set at p < 0.05. The findings showed that most respondents experienced normal menstrual characteristics. However, dysmenorrhoea (84.0%) and premenstrual syndrome (PMS) (93.7%) were highly prevalent. The majority of respondents reported moderate perceived stress levels (84.6%). No significant association was found between perceived stress level and age at menarche, menstrual cycle length, duration of menstrual flow, amount of menstrual flow, menstrual cycle pattern, and dysmenorrhoea (p > 0.05). However, a significant association was observed between PMS and perceived stress level (p = 0.01). In addition, age group, year of study, programme of study, and BMI category were not significantly associated with menstrual pattern (p > 0.05). In conclusion, moderate perceived stress was common among undergraduate female students, and PMS was the only menstrual characteristic significantly associated with perceived stress. These findings highlight the importance of promoting menstrual health awareness and stress management among female university students. Keywords: menstrual pattern, perceived stress, premenstrual syndrome, undergraduate female students, PSS-10.
Description
Keywords
-