Lancastle D, Kopp Kallner H, Hale G, Wood B, Ashcroft L, Driscoll H. Development of a brief menstrual quality of life measure for women with heavy menstrual bleeding.
BMC Womens Health 2023;
23:105. [PMID:
36918914 PMCID:
PMC10011796 DOI:
10.1186/s12905-023-02235-0]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 02/20/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence advises that considerations around quality of life should be made when assessing and treating heavy menstrual bleeding. A quick and reliable method for women to assess the impact of HMB on their quality of life might encourage help-seeking. This research aimed to develop a new 10-item measure of menstrual quality of life (the PERIOD-QOL).
METHODS
Three pilot studies describe PERIOD-QOL development and a cross-sectional survey (N = 376) assessed PERIOD-QOL scores in women who reported HMB and those who did not. A population sample of women (mean age 30.29, SD = 9.06) completed the PERIOD-QOL and rated their menstrual bleeding as heavy/very heavy/extremely heavy (HMB group) or very light/light/moderate bleeding (LMMB) group. Data were analysed using independent samples Analysis of Variance and independent samples t-tests.
RESULTS
Cronbach's Alpha for the PERIOD-QOL = .88. A significant reduction in PERIOD-QOL scores was found across the 6 levels of bleeding from very light to extremely heavy, and significantly lower PERIOD-QOL scores were reported in the HMB than the LMMB group.
CONCLUSION
The results suggest that the PERIOD-QOL is a reliable measure and that women experiencing HMB reported significantly lower menstrual quality of life than those who did not. Further validation of the PERIOD-QOL is required to determine its relationships with existing measures of menstrual quality of life and to establish whether PERIOD-QOL scores are associated with decisions to seek help from health professionals and with verified diagnoses of conditions that cause HMB.
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