Adolescence in girls is marked by a host of physical and psychological changes, including
those associated with menstruation. Abnormal uterine bleeding (AUB) is one of the
most commonly encountered medical problems in this transition from childhood to maturity.
Although common, this problem is likely under-reported and population-derived prevalence
rates are not well described for adolescents. Small studies, however, suggest that
the problem transcends ethnic and geographic boundaries. In Nigeria, 12.1% of adolescents
experienced heavy menstrual bleeding which affected their work or school performance.
1
In Hong Kong, 17.9% of girls at a mean age of 15 reported heavy menstrual bleeding.
2
In Sweden, 37% of girls with an average age of 16.7 reported heavy menstruations.
3
Similar rates have been reported in Malaysia and Turkey.
4
,
5
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: September 28, 2010
Footnotes
The authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest.
Identification
Copyright
© 2010 North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
