Table 3.
Early menstrual experiences in women with endometriosis compared to control women.
| Women with Endometriosis (N = 563) | Control Women (N = 563) | p-value* | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Somatic factors | |||
| Age at menarche (N/%) | 558 | 540 | 0 . 004 |
| 8–11 years | 118 (21.15%) | 71 (13.15%) | |
| 12–15 years | 393 (70.43%) | 421 (77.96%) | |
| >15 years | 47 (8.42%) | 48 (8.89%) | |
| Cycle Length (N/%) | 544 | 521 | <0 . 001 |
| Regular cycles, 4–6 weeks | 276 (50.74%) | 346 (66.41%) | |
| Regular cycles, <4 weeks | 136 (25.00%) | 91 (17.47%) | |
| Regular cycles, >6 weeks | 15 (2.76%) | 9 (1.73%) | |
| Irregular cycles | 93 (17.10%) | 62 (11.90%) | |
| Amenorrhea | 24 (4.40%) | 13 (2.50%) | |
| Personal history of dysmenorrhea | |||
| Having had or having dysmenorrhea (N/%) | 545 | 534 | <0 . 001 a |
| Never | 35 (6.42%) | 155 (29.03%) | |
| Yes, but now no dysmenorrhea | 159 (29.17%) | 219 (41.01%) | |
| Yes | 351 (64.41%) | 160 (29.96%) | |
| Onset of dysmenorrhea (N/%) | 485 | 292 | <0 . 001 a |
| Yes, onset at menarche | 219 (45.15%) | 127 (43.49%) | |
| Yes, onset 2–3 years after menarche | 92 (18.97%) | 71 (24.32%) | |
| Yes, onset >3 years after menarche | 174 (35.88%) | 94 (32.19%) | |
| Memories associated with menarche (N/%) | 554 | 533 | <0 . 001 |
| Only pleasant memories | 42 (7.58%) | 37 (6.94%) | |
| More pleasant than unpleasant memories | 95 (17.15%) | 146 (27.39%) | |
| More unpleasant than pleasant memories | 221 (39.89%) | 214 (40.15%) | |
| Only unpleasant memories | 121 (21.84%) | 38 (7.13%) | |
| No memories | 75 (13.54%) | 98 (18.39%) | |
| Dysmenorrhea in mother (N/%) | 533 | 517 | 0.031 |
| Very painful | 106 (19.89%) | 71 (13.73%) | |
| Somewhat painful | 156 (29.27%) | 137 (26.50%) | |
| Unknown | 91 (17.07%) | 97 (18.76%) | |
| Not painful | 180 (33.77%) | 212 (41.01%) | |
| Mothers’ attitude towards menstruation (N/%) | 531 | 512 | 0.081 |
| Rather positive | 21 (3.95%) | 17 (3.32%) | |
| Rather negative | 196 (36.91%) | 210 (41.02%) | |
| Unknown | 114 (21.47%) | 76 (14.84%) | |
| Neutral | 200 (37.66%) | 209 (40.82%) | |
Data presented as N (%) using Mann-Withney-U test for age at menarche, Pearson chi-squared and Fisher's exact test for other variables.
a
Statistical significance remained after controlling for age and parity on bivariate logistic regression analysis.
*
The bold p-values indicate the statistical significance in the bivariate analysis, significant p-values are Bonferroni corrected α = 0.01.