KNOWLEDGE AND MANAGEMENT OF DYSMENORRHEA AMONG FEMALE STUDENTS IN SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN BENIN CITY, EDO STATE.

One of the most prevalent gynaecological issues affecting teenage females, especially those enrolled in secondary schools, is dysmenorrhea, or painful menstruation. In this study, female students in a subset of secondary schools in Edo State, Nigeria's Ovia North-East Local Government Area were asked about their knowledge of and approaches to managing dysmenorrhea. A total of 254 female students from SS1 to SS3 were chosen using a stratified random sampling procedure as part of a cross-sectional descriptive research design. A systematic self-administered questionnaire was used to gather the data, and the Chi-square test and descriptive statistics were used to analyse the results at a significance level of 0.05. The results showed that just 27.9% of respondents had ever heard of dysmenorrhea, showing a lack of knowledge about the disorder, while 78.7% of respondents reported experiencing menstrual pain.Many students reported absence and decreased academic concentration during their periods, and moderate to severe discomfort was highly prevalent. The majority of pain management was self-directed, with 32.3% relaxing or sleeping to relieve pain, 29.1% using heat therapy, and 34.6% regularly using over-the-counter medications. Only 2%, nevertheless, went to school clinics for medical assistance. The management strategies used and awareness of dysmenorrhea were found to be significantly correlated by the Chi-square analysis (p = 0.03). Although dysmenorrhea is very common among girls in secondary school, the study found that there is still a lack of awareness and proper treatment. It suggests enhancing access to adolescent-friendly health facilities, addressing sociocultural barriers to obtaining professional treatment, and integrating menstrual health education into school curricula.