Menstruation disorders among female athletes

The aim of this study is to establish the frequency of menstrual cycle disorder among women actively practicing sports and to describe their qualitative character.
Material and methods: 150 women age 18-35 were eligible for the study. The investigated group consisting of individuals actively practicing sports; the control group – women practicing sports occasionally or not at all. The research was based on a self-prepared questionnaire ”Sports and sexual life”. Statistica 6.0 computer software was used for statistical analysis of data.
Results: Comparing to non-cases, sportswomen have statistically more irregular menstruations (20 proc. versus 50 proc. respectively). Nearly 82 proc. sportswomen find these disorders related to time, when they begin intensive training. One in ten of sportswomen notifies spotting between menstruation cycles and nearly 1/3 claims that menstruation did not occur for a long time.
Conclusions: Too intensive training may disturb hormonal homeostasis and lead to dysregulation of menstrual cycle. Women actively practicing sports should be informed about the possible health consequences of excessive physical training.