Abstract:

The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of premenstrual syndrome and affecting factors among university students. The research has been done with 333 female students who continued their education at Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University Gölhisar Health Services Vocational School, between September 28, 2015- January 08, 2016. Ethics Committee approval and necessary permissions have been obtained for the conduction of the study. The data have been collected by using; The Introductory Information Form, Premenstrual Symptoms Risk Factors Determination Form, the stress subscale of the Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale (DASS) and the Premenstrual Syndrome Scale (PMSÖ). Evaluation of the data has been done by using Pearson Chi-square, logistic regression analysis. In the study, it has been determined that 61.9% of the participants were 19-20 years old, 75.7% of them resided in a dormitory / hostel during their education period. Participants’ average score of the Premenstrual Syndrome Scale has been detected to be 119.25 ± 35.52. Premenstrual syndrome prevalence of the participants was 56.8%, and the sub-dimension prevalences have been determined to be; 65.5% fatigue, 64.9% irritability, 63.1% appetite changes, 60.1% depressive affect, 59.5% pain, 58.0% bloating, 50.5% sleep changes, 44.7% depressive thoughts, 34.8% anxiety. In addition, income status, pain during menstruation and not exercising have been determined to affect the prevalence of premenstrual syndrome. It has been observed that more than half of the students had premenstrual syndrome, and they commonly experienced widespread tiredness, irritability and appetite changes. It is recommended; to educate young girls about the menstrual cycle, premenstrual syndrome and coping methods, and to disseminate experimental studies on the subject.