Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26936906›Full record

SynthesisBMJ open2016

Menstrual hygiene management among adolescent girls in India: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Anna Maria van Eijk, M Sivakami, Mamita Bora Thakkar, Ashley Bauman, Kayla F Laserson, Susanne Coates, Penelope A Phillips-Howard

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMJ open, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 151 papers, 14 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
151citing papers in PubMed, 14 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

151 citing papers in PubMed, 14 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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91 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Anna Maria van EijkDepartment of Clinical Sciences, Liverpool school of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK.
M SivakamiTata Institute of Social Sciences, School of Health Systems Studies, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
Mamita Bora ThakkarUNICEF India, New Delhi, India.
Ashley BaumanDepartment of Clinical Sciences, Liverpool school of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK.
Kayla F LasersonCenters for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) India, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Susanne CoatesUNICEF India, New Delhi, India.
Penelope A Phillips-HowardDepartment of Clinical Sciences, Liverpool school of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK.

Funding

Medical Research Council G1100677
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo assess the status of menstrual hygiene management (MHM) among adolescent girls in India to determine unmet needs.

designSystematic review and meta-analysis. We searched PubMed, The Global Health Database, Google Scholar and references for studies published from 2000 to September 2015 on girls' MHM.

settingIndia.

participantsAdolescent girls. OUTCOME MEASURES: Information on menarche awareness, type of absorbent used, disposal, hygiene, restrictions and school absenteeism was extracted from eligible materials; a quality score was applied. Meta-analysis was used to estimate pooled prevalence (PP), and meta-regression to examine the effect of setting, region and time.

resultsData from 138 studies involving 193 subpopulations and 97,070 girls were extracted. In 88 studies, half of the girls reported being informed prior to menarche (PP 48%, 95% CI 43% to 53%, I(2) 98.6%). Commercial pad use was more common among urban (PP 67%, 57% to 76%, I(2) 99.3%, n=38) than rural girls (PP 32%, 25% to 38%, I(2) 98.6%, n=56, p<0.0001), with use increasing over time (p<0.0001). Inappropriate disposal was common (PP 23%, 16% to 31%, I(2) 99.0%, n=34). Menstruating girls experienced many restrictions, especially for religious activities (PP 0.77, 0.71 to 0.83, I(2) 99.1%, n=67). A quarter (PP 24%, 19% to 30%, I(2) 98.5%, n=64) reported missing school during periods. A lower prevalence of absenteeism was associated with higher commercial pad use in univariate (p=0.023) but not in multivariate analysis when adjusted for region (p=0.232, n=53). Approximately a third of girls changed their absorbents in school facilities (PP 37%, 29% to 46%, I(2) 97.8%, n=17). Half of the girls' homes had a toilet (PP 51%, 36% to 67%, I(2) 99.4%, n=21). The quality of studies imposed limitations on analyses and the interpretation of results (mean score 3 on a scale of 0-7).

conclusionsStrengthening of MHM programmes in India is needed. Education on awareness, access to hygienic absorbents and disposal of MHM items need to be addressed. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42015019197.

Indexed as

AbsenteeismHealth Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeMenarcheMenstruationAdolescentFemaleHumansHygieneIndiaRural PopulationSchoolsUrban PopulationPREVENTIVE MEDICINEPUBLIC HEALTH

Identifiers

PMID26936906
PMCPMC4785312

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.