Introduction: Menstruation is a milestone event in a girl's life and it is the beginning of her reproductive life. A girl menstruates on an average for three to five days a month, 12 months a year, and the cycle carries on till she reaches menopause in 40-45 years. Periods are normal and healthy, yet many females of rural and urban India struggle to manage this monthly occurrence. An unhygienic menstrual practice has been associated with adverse health among girls.

Aim: To explore the knowledge, attitude and practices about menstruation and reproductive morbidity among 12-18 years old menstruating girls in rural and urban schools in Mirzapur.

Material and Method: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in rural and urban school, in Mirzapur to evaluate the knowledge, attitude and practice about menstrual hygiene and reproductive morbidity among 12-18 years old menstruating girls. A total of 800 girls were involved in the study, out of which 400 were from rural school and 400 were from urban school by using a simple random sampling technique. The data was collected by using a structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistic was used for analyzing the data.

Results: Only 16% of them were aware about menstruation prior to the attainment of menarche; 72% of respondents knew that the menstruation is a natural physiological process; 95% knew that ideal absorbent material is sanitary pads. But only 25% girls use sanitary pads only, 20% used old/new clothes only, while 55% used both sanitary pads and clothes. 75% girls found sanitary pads costly. 89% of respondent girls are having at least one reproductive tract problem. Statistically significant association was found between perceived reproductive morbidity and poor menstrual hygiene practices.

Conclusion: Girls will continue to struggle till they lack information, and deep set, harmful social norms remain unaddressed. They must taught about menstruation and its relationship with their reproductive health.

Keywords: Menstruation, Adolescent girls, Sanitary pads, Mirzapur, Reproductive morbidities.

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Dr Sadhana Meena

Department of Community Medicine, SMS Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India