Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of participants.
| Characteristics | Probiotic (n = 36) | Placebo (n = 36) | p |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participant characteristics | |||
| Age (years), median (IQR) | 25 (5) | 26 (7) | 0.564 |
| Menarche (years), median (IQR) | 12 (2) | 12 (1) | 0.730 |
| Menstrual cycle (days), median (IQR) | 30 (4) | 30 (6) | 0.895 |
| Menstrual flow (days), median (IQR) | 7 (1) | 7 (3) | 0.275 |
| Education level, n (%) | |||
| Tertiary | 35 (97.2) | 34 (94.4) | 1.000 |
| Postgraduate | 1 (2.8) | 2 (5.6) | |
| Marital status, n (%) | |||
| Single | 29 (80.6) | 30 (83.3) | 1.000 |
| Married | 7 (19.4) | 6 (16.7) | |
| Ethnicity, n (%) | |||
| Malay | 28 (77.8) | 31 (86.1) | 0.234 |
| Chinese | 5 (13.9) | 4 (11.1) | |
| Indian | 3 (8.3) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Others | 0 (0.0) | 1 (2.8) | |
| Occupation, n (%) | |||
| Unemployed | 17 (47.2) | 15 (42.9) | 0.174 |
| Employed | 14 (38.9) | 18 (51.4) | |
| Self-employed | 1 (2.8) | 2 (5.7) | |
| Others | 4 (11.1) | 1 (2.8) | |
IQR: interquartile range.