Multimedia-Guided Self-Acupressure for Dysmenorrhea

Background: Up to 84% of women of reproductive age experience primary dysmenorrhea, a gynecological issue. Approximately 15% of those affected by dysmenorrhea require sick leave from school or work due to severe pain, impacting both quality of life and causing substantial economic losses. Dysmenorrhea is typically categorized into primary and secondary types; this study focuses on primary dysmenorrhea. Primary dysmenorrhea occurs mainly during the ovulatory phase and is characterized by intense, crampy spasms, often accompanied by symptoms such as headaches, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. Acupressure massage is convenient, relatively safe, cost-effective, and can be enhanced through multimedia instruction to improve learning efficiency, accommodate individual needs, and overcome temporal and spatial limitations. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effectiveness of multimedia-assisted acupressure at the Sanyinjiao acupoint for alleviating primary dysmenorrhea.

Purposes: To investigate the effectiveness of multimedia-guided acupressure at the Sanyinjiao acupoint in improving primary dysmenorrhea among young women.

Research method: This study employs a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design over a three-month period. Participants will be recruited from two selected colleges in central Taiwan through voluntary enrollment. It is anticipated that each group, experimental and control, will consist of 22 participants. The experimental group will receive general multimedia health education videos along with self-made multimedia videos teaching acupressure at the Sanyinjiao acupoint. Treatment will commence one week before the menstrual cycle and continue until the 5th day of menstruation. On the other hand, the control group received general multimedia health education videos only.

Results: The data will be analyzed by SPSS 28.0 statistical software. Statistical methods will include descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation analysis. Inferential statistics will include independent t-tests, chi-square tests, and paired t-tests to compare menstrual pain conditions before and after the intervention and the differences between the two groups.

Background: Up to 84% of women of reproductive age experience primary dysmenorrhea, a gynecological issue. Approximately 15% of those affected by dysmenorrhea require sick leave from school or work due to severe pain, impacting both quality of life and causing substantial economic losses. Dysmenorrhea is typically categorized into primary and secondary types; this study focuses on primary dysmenorrhea. Primary dysmenorrhea occurs mainly during the ovulatory phase and is characterized by intense, crampy spasms, often accompanied by symptoms such as headaches, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. Acupressure massage is convenient, relatively safe, cost-effective, and can be enhanced through multimedia instruction to improve learning efficiency, accommodate individual needs, and overcome temporal and spatial limitations. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effectiveness of multimedia-assisted acupressure at the Sanyinjiao acupoint for alleviating primary dysmenorrhea.

Purposes: To investigate the effectiveness of multimedia-guided acupressure at the Sanyinjiao acupoint in improving primary dysmenorrhea among young women.

Research method: This study employs a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design over a three-month period. Participants will be recruited from two selected colleges in central Taiwan through voluntary enrollment. It is anticipated that each group, experimental and control, will consist of 22 participants. The experimental group will receive general multimedia health education videos along with self-made multimedia videos teaching acupressure at the Sanyinjiao acupoint. Treatment will commence one week before the menstrual cycle and continue until the 5th day of menstruation. On the other hand, the control group received general multimedia health education videos only.

Results: The data will be analyzed by SPSS 28.0 statistical software. Statistical methods will include descriptive statistics such as frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation analysis. Inferential statistics will include independent t-tests, chi-square tests, and paired t-tests to compare menstrual pain conditions before and after the intervention and the differences between the two groups.

Eligibility Criteria:
Inclusion Criteria:

1) Age: 18-30 years old; (2) Regular menstrual cycles (21-38 days); (3) Experienced dysmenorrhea in at least one of the past three months, with a self-reported pain score of \>3 on the VAS scale.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Diagnosed with pelvic organic diseases by a physician, such as endometriosis, adenomyosis, endometrial polyps, etc.;
2. Pregnant or breastfeeding women;
3. History of gynecological surgery;
4. Contraindications to acupoint massage, such as thrombocytopenia with bleeding tendency, local infection or inflammation at the massage site, excessive weakness, etc.;
5. Already capable of using acupoint massage to relieve pain;
6. Students enrolled in the course taught by the principal investigator.