An Analysis of the Current Status of dysmenorrhea patients visiting Korean Medicine Hospital

Su-Ji Choi; Dong-Il Kim; Choi, Su-Ji; Kim, Dong-Il

doi:10.13048/jkm.23003

JKM > Volume 44(1); 2023 > Article

Choi and Kim: An Analysis of the Current Status of dysmenorrhea patients visiting Korean Medicine Hospital

Original Article

The Journal of Korean Medicine 2022; 44(1): 28-37.

Published online: March 1, 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.13048/jkm.23003

An Analysis of the Current Status of dysmenorrhea patients visiting Korean Medicine Hospital

Su-Ji Choi¹

, Dong-Il Kim²

¹College of Korean Medicine, Dong-Eui University

²Dept. of Obstetrics & Gynecology, College of Korean Medicine, Dong-Guk University

Correspondence to: Dong-Il Kim, Dept. of Korean Medicine Obstetrics & Gynecology, Ilsan Dong-Guk University Korean Medicine Hospital, 27 Dongguk ro, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do, Korea, Tel : +82-31-961-9060, E-mail : obgykdi@hanmail.net

Received July 28, 2022 Accepted August 17, 2022

Abstract

Objectives

This review aimed to present the characteristics of dysmenorrhea patients visiting a Korean Medicine hospital.

Methods

One hundred thirteen dysmenorrhea patients visiting a Korean Medicine hospital from 2017 to 2021 were studied. We evaluated the general characteristics, type of dysmenorrhea, menstrual characteristics and overall therapies.

Results

The average age of the 113 subjects was 29.4 years old, with 38.1% in their 20s and 25.7% in their 30s. The average pain intensity was NRS 7.5, and the menstrual pain severity of 79.6% of the subjects was grade 2 or 3. The types of dysmenorrhea were classified as primary dysmenorrhea in 62.0% and secondary dysmenorrhea in 38.1%. The average treatment period of the patients was 1–2 months in most cases (44.25%). The most common treatment method was herbal medicine.

Conclusions

We figured out the status of dysmenorrhea patients and treatment in a Korean medicine hospital.

Keywords: Dysmenorrhea, Pelvic pain, Menstruation, Korean Traditional Medicine

Table 1

Main Age Group of Patients with Dysmenorrhea

	No. of patient (%)
10s	21(18.58)
20s	43(38.05)
30s	29(25.66)
40s	17(15.04)
50s	3(2.65)

Table 2

Past Medical History of Patients

		No. of patient (%)
With Diseases (N=36)	Leiomyoma of uterus	9(7.96)
	Adenomyosis uteri	7(6.19)
	Ovarian cyst	6(5.31)
	Endometriosis	5(4.42)
	Polycystic ovarian syndrome	2(1.77)
	Endometrial hyperplasia	1(0.88)
	Cervical dysplasia	1(0.88)
	Chronic cervicitis	1(0.88)
	Endometrial polyp	1(0.88)
	Adenomyosis uteri + Endometriosis	1(0.88)
	Endometriosis + Ovarian cyst	1(0.88)
	Adenomyosis uteri + Endometriosis + Leiomyoma of uterine	1(0.88)

	No Diseases	18(15.93)

	Not reported	59(52.21)

	Total	113(100)

Table 3

Characteristics of Menstrual Pain

Category	Factor	No. of patient (%)
Onset of pain (n=65)	Within the first 2 years after menarche	33(50.77)
Onset of pain (n=65)	The years pass after menarche	32(49.23)

Pain cycle (n=64)	At the same time of a period	57(86.06)
Pain cycle (n=64)	Before 1~2 weeks of a period	7(10.94)

Duration of pain (n=95)	<72 Hours	74(77.89)
	>72 Hours	21(22.21)
	Average of time (n=95)	64.21±27.90 (hrs/period)

After taking of painkillers (n=54)	Relieved	31(57.41)
	Unrelieved	23(42.59)
	Average number of painkillers (n=75)	5.03±3.77 (numbers/period)

Table 4

Frequency and Duration for Treating Dysmenorrhea

Variables		N	%
Average visiting days per month (N=113)	1	49	43.36
	2–3	20	17.70
	4–5	29	25.66
	6–7	6	5.31
	≥ 8	9	7.96

Average duration for treatment (N=113)	1 week – 1month	33	29.20
	1–2 months	50	44.25
	2–3 months	8	7.08
	3–6 months	8	7.08
	6–12months	7	6.19
	≥ 1 year	7	6.19

Table 5

Types of Treatment Methods

Treatment Methods	No.of patient (%)
Acupuncture + Herbal medicine	41(36.28)
Acupuncture + Herbal medicine + Moxibustion	36(31.86)
Herbal medicine	28(24.78)
Acupuncture	2(1.77)
Acupuncture+ Herbal medicine + Pharmacopuncture	2(1.77)
Herbal medicine + Moxibustion	1(0.88)
No treatment	3(2.65)

Total	113(100)

Table 6

Frequency and Duration for Treating Primary Dysmenorrhea

Variables		N	%
Average visiting days per month (N=70)	1	37	52.86
	2–3	10	14.29
	4–5	18	25.71
	6–7	3	4.29
	≥ 8	2	2.86
Average duration for treatment (N=70)	1 week – 1month	18	25.71
	1–2 months	36	51.43
	2–3 months	2	2.86
	3–6 months	5	7.14
	6–12months	2	2.86
	≥ 1 year	7	10.00

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