A recent study illustrated that complementary and alternative therapies are employed for the treatment of dysmenorrheal among undergraduate students. The incidence of ever-use and current use of complementary and alternative therapies is very much amongst the students.

A cross-sectional study was performed with students using a validated questionnaire to assess the use of complementary and alternative therapies (CATs).

This was a cross-sectional study conducted among undergraduate pharmacy students in a public university in Malaysia using a validated and pre-tested self-administered questionnaire. The study was conducted in November and December 2019. The data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical tests.

In this study, 318 female students were invited for conducting the study. Only 219 among them completed the questionnaire. In this study, the opinion of female students towards complementary and alternative therapies for dysmenorrhea is considered. The information was evaluated with the help of descriptive and inferential statistical tests.

Around 23 and 9% of the participants thought that complementary and alternative therapies were equally helpful and more helpful than analgesics, respectively. 

Commonly used complementary and alternative therapies and their percentage of use among students:

Common reasons for using CAT and their percentage of use among students:

The incidence of ever-use and current use of complementary and alternative therapies is high among students. Application of heating pad and bed rest are the mainly used CATs. Limiting the requirement for analgesics and effectiveness are the major reasons behind the current use of CATs.