Introduction: There is lack of information on the process of menstruation, the physical and psychological changes associated with puberty and proper requirements for managing menstruation. Hence this community based study was carried out with the objective to assess the level of knowledge and practice regarding menstrual hygiene among school going adolescent girls.

Methodology: A descriptive, cross sectional study was conducted among 996 adolescent girls of senior secondary schools of Jaipur city.

Results: It was evident that 80.72% participants were aware about menstruation before their menarche and the most important sources of information were mothers (67.77%).Participants who were aware of the fact that menstruation is a normal process in which source of bleeding is uterus was 60.14%.Majority (68.07%) used sanitary pad as absorbent material. 34 % changed absorbent every 5-6 hours. 51 .70%  of participants cleaned external genital area twice a day. Majority (75.56%) of participants discard the pad in dustbin after wrapping in paper.

Conclusions: The present study reveals that only 68.07% participants use sanitary pads. There is strong need to improvise and promote good menstrual hygiene knowledge and practices among adolescent girls. Improving mother’s knowledge on menstrual hygiene management can go a long way in improving menstrual hygiene practice.

Keywords: Adolescent girls, Menarche, Menstruation, Menstrual Hygiene.

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Rekha Shekhawat