Introduction

Onset age at menarche has been considered an important indicator of reproductive maturity in females and reflects the health status of the population. The purpose of this study was to determine the mean menarcheal age and to examine whether anthropometric and socio-economic status (SES) influences age at menarche in the girls from Punjab province of Pakistan.

Methods

In this population-based cross-sectional study, 10,050 school-going girls aged 8–16 years from 35 schools across 12 districts of Punjab were recruited. Menarcheal data was obtained by using a questionnaire, while the anthropometric data were obtained by the measurements of standing height, body weight, waist, and hip circumference. The anthropometric indices of pre- and post-menarcheal girls were compared. Student's t-test, ANOVA, and post-hoc Tukey's test was applied for comparison between two and multiple groups respectively, P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results

There was a normal distribution of age at menarche and mean was 12.4 years in the study population. The girls who reached menarche were found to be taller and heavier with higher BMIs, having a greater waist and hip circumference as compared to their pre-menarcheal peers. Waist-hip-ratio was less, and the waist-to-height ratio was higher in post-menarcheal as compared to pre-menarcheal girls. The girls belonging to low SES had delayed onset of menarche as compared to those belonging to middle/high SES.

Conclusion

The age at menarche was associated with SES and changes in various anthropometric measurements reflecting the growth status of girls.

中文翻译：

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成长和社会经济地位，对在校女童初潮年龄的影响

介绍

初潮开始年龄被认为是女性生殖成熟度的重要指标，反映了人群的健康状况。本研究的目的是确定平均初潮年龄，并检查人体测量学和社会经济地位 (SES) 是否影响巴基斯坦旁遮普省女孩的初潮年龄。

方法

在这项以人口为基础的横断面研究中，招募了来自旁遮普省 12 个地区的 35 所学校的 10,050 名 8-16 岁在校女孩。初潮数据通过问卷调查获得，人体测量数据通过站立高度、体重、腰围和臀围的测量获得。比较了初潮前和初潮后女孩的人体测量指标。学生 t 检验、方差分析和事后 Tukey 检验分别应用于两组和多组之间的比较，P  < 0.05 被认为具有统计学意义。

结果

初潮年龄呈正态分布，研究人群的平均年龄为 12.4 岁。与初潮前的同龄人相比，达到初潮的女孩更高更重，BMI 更高，腰围和臀围更大。与初潮前的女孩相比，初潮后的女孩腰臀比较小，腰围与身高的比例较高。与属于中/高 SES 的女孩相比，属于低 SES 的女孩初潮延迟。

结论

初潮年龄与 SES 和反映女孩生长状况的各种人体测量指标的变化有关。