ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Mental Health
Premenstrual Symptoms and Associated Factors in Female Students in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study
Provisionally accepted
Francis Moses Rajappa1
Dr.vanitha Rani2*
Akshaya Sai Kannan3Abeer s Aseeri2Eman Baleegh Meawad Elsayed2, Rasha Gamal Ahmed Abdelgawwad2Amutha Chellathurai4Kamaldeen Nasrin Nisha2
Mona Abdelmaksoud2Gehan ELNabawy Ahmed Moawad2- 1St. Xavier College of Nursing, Kumbakonam, India
- 2King Khalid University, Abha, Saudi Arabia
- 3Vinayaka Mission's Medical College & Hospital Karaikal, Karaikal, India
- 4Saveetha College of Nursing, Chennai, India
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Background: Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a common condition affecting the physical, psychological, and behavioral health of reproductive-aged women. This study aimed to assess the association between sociodemographic and menstrual characteristics and the severity of PMS symptoms among female students. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 370 female college students. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire covering sociodemographic factors, menstrual characteristics, and PMS symptoms across three domains: physiological, psychological, and behavioral. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to identify associated factors. Results: departments (94.6%). The majority had a normal BMI (65.4%), and 76.5% reported moderate menstrual flow. ANOVA results indicated significant associations between PMS symptoms and BMI, marital status, menstrual cycle length, and menstrual flow. In the regression models, overweight or obese students demonstrated significantly lower physiological (β = –0.283, p = 0.031), psychological (β = –0.348, p = 0.018), and behavioral symptom scores (β = –0.481, p < 0.001) compared with underweight peers. Students with heavy menstrual flow reported higher symptom scores across all domains (physiological: β = 0.931, p < 0.001). Overweight or obese students exhibited lower symptom scores compared to their underweight peers (β = –0.283, p = 0.031). Additionally, students from non-healthcare departments demonstrated significantly higher psychological symptoms (β=–0.744, p = 0.001), and those who experienced early menarche (≤13 years) showed more behavioral symptoms (β = 0.424, p = 0.013) than healthcare students. Conclusion: PMS symptoms among female students are significantly influenced by BMI, menstrual flow characteristics, department of study, and age at menarche. These findings highlight the importance of targeted health education and support programs that consider these factors to effectively manage PMS symptoms in this population.
Keywords: Premenstrual Syndrome, Female students, Nursing, Prevalence, Symptoms, Saudi Arabia, university students
Received: 05 Sep 2025; Accepted: 29 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Rajappa, Rani, Sai Kannan, s Aseeri, Meawad Elsayed, Ahmed Abdelgawwad, Chellathurai, Nasrin Nisha, Abdelmaksoud and Ahmed Moawad. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Dr.vanitha Rani, vbasha@kku.edu.sa
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