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MENARCHE

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MENARCHE

Menarche is a medical term used to refer to the first menstrual period in a female adolescent.

  • Menarche is the result of interactions between the hypothalamic hormones, pituitary hormones, and the ovarian hormones. It also can be affected by the thyroid, pancreatic and the adrenal hormones.
  • Menarche signals the possibility of fertility and is associated with the development of the secondary sexual characteristics.
  • Menarche doesn’t occur until all the parts of a girl’s reproductive system have matured and are working together.
  • It is abnormal for menarche to occur before the appearance of any secondary sexual development.
  • The first menstruation cycles of a young girl tend to be irregular and ovulatory. This means that no ovulation is present during this period. However, some girls can ovulate on their first period.
  • It is common for teens to have irregular periods. It might take six years or more after the first period starts for the cycle to become regular.
  • It has been estimated that most girl will have ovulatory cycles within 5 years of menarche
  • Girls experience menarche at different ages but the usual age is between the ages of 9 to 15.
  • The onset of menarche is influenced by female biology, environmental factors, and genetic as well as nutritional factors.
  • In very rare cases, menarche may occur at a usually early age, this is either a precocious puberty or a symptom of endocrine disease.
  • If menarche failed to occur 3 years after breast development, or beyond 16 years of age, this delay is referred to as primary amenorrhea.

WHAT CAN CAUSE EARLY MENARCHE?

Some social and environmental stress factor associated with early menarche may include:

  • Childhood obesity
  • Being born at a low birth weight
  • Lack of exercise in childhood
  • Exposure to smoking
  • Experiencing preeclampsia during pregnancy.
  • Absence of breastfeeding
  • Stress

WHAT CAN DELAY MENARCHE

Certain illnesses and disease can delay menarche, they include:

  • Diabetes mellitus type 1
  • Asthma
  • Untreated celiac disease
  • Cystic fibrosis
  • Inflammatory diseases

Late menarche is associated with a decreased risk of developing breast cancer, a decreased frequency of coronary heart disease, and reduction in teen pregnancy.

SIGNS OF MENARCHE

  • Emotional or moody behavior for no apparent reason
  • Bloating
  • Brownish fluid on the underwear. Blood flow usually starts this way and becomes redder and heavier during a period.
  • Abdominal cramps

Schedule a medical checkup if your child:

  • Has not started menstruating within three years of breast growth or by the age of 15.
  • The breast hasn’t started to grow by age of 13
  • Has a period that lasts more than seven days
  • Has severe pain during periods
  • Is bleeding between periods
  • Gets sick or have a sudden onset of fever after using a tampon
  • Has period that occurs more frequently than 21 days or less frequently than 45 days
  • Goes 3 months without a period after beginning menstruation

DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT

If your child experiences either an early menarche or late menarche, diagnosis is available to determine the cause of the problem.

To diagnose early puberty, your doctor will ask some questions and run some test to check the child’s hormone.

For late menarche, evaluation of the ovarian, pituitary hormones can help in making diagnosis. This can be done by a thorough history and a careful visual examination of the genitalia and manual examination of the females reproductive organs.

TREATMENT:  treatment depends on the underlying cause of the child’s condition.