RESUMEN
Background: Menstruation is a normal phenomenon and is almost universal in all females of reproductive age. Adolescence has been recognized as a special period which signifies the transition from girlhood to womanhood with the start of menstruation but there are substantial lacunae in knowledge about menstruation, problems they face and practices they adopt in this period. Objectives: 1.To know the knowledge about menstruation in adolescents, 2.To assess problems of menstruation, 3.To address the special needs regarding maintenance of hygiene during menstruation, 4.To notice impact of socioeconomic status upon them. Material and Method: A descriptive observational (cross sectional) study was carried to assess the knowledge, problems and practices by adolescent girls attending schools in a rural area of Kishanganj district (Bihar). A proforma consisted of predesigned , pretested, structured questionnaire to be filled up by the students and a check-list of height, wt, BP, HC, WC, to be filled up by the researchers , were used. Results: Among 200 adolescents, 70% knew that menstruation is a normal phenomenon; 79% were suffering from menstrual problems and regarding type of absorbats; 70% were using only sanitary napkins, while 30% were using both sanitary napkins and cloth as absorbants. Conclusion: This study shows a lack of understandings of the importance of maintenance of hygiene during menstruation and a lot of gap is present between problems during menstruation in adolescents due to lack of knowledge and proper guidance.