GEM ROSEMARY.- Almost 23,000 Spanish women participated in a survey, pioneering at national level, to identify possible alterations in the premenstrual and menstrual cycles of the Department of Nursing of the University of Granada (UGR), a project led by midwife Laura Baena. Thus, 78% of Spanish women perceived changes in their menstruation after being vaccinated against COVID-19.
In their study published in the journal women’s health collected sociodemographic and clinical data from women who received the complete vaccination schedule against COVID-19 which included the type of vaccine given and perceived changes in cycle length, amount of bleeding, pain, presence of clots and premenstrual symptoms. In total, nearly 23,000 Spanish women participated, of whom 14,153 met the research inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Results
Among their results, they point out that 78% of the participants perceived changes in premenstrual and menstrual symptoms after the administration of the vaccine. Thus, the women who reported changes are a little older (especially over 35) and a little more smoker than the women who did not notice any changes.
The most common alterations in premenstrual symptoms are increased fatigue (43%), bloating (37%), irritability (29%), sadness (28%) and headaches (28%). The most common changes in menstrual symptoms are more bleeding (43%), pain (41%), delayed menstruation (38%) and fewer bleeding days (34.5%).
For Laura Baena, midwife and researcher in the nursing service of the UGR and main author of this book, “the clinical trials carried out for the development of vaccines against COVID-19 they did not include recording any premenstrual and menstrual changes after dosing. After the start of the vaccination campaign, many women detected changes in their menstrual cycle. For this reason, the EVA project was launched, the objective of which is to determine whether there is an association between the vaccine against the SARS-CoV-2 virus and menstrual disorders”, she explains.
This study, funded by the Antonio Chamorro-Alejandro Otero Research Chair at the University of Granada, is the first in Spanish population which collects perceived changes in premenstrual and menstrual symptoms derived from the COVID-19 vaccine. “Vaccinated women perceive slight alterations at both times of the cycle. Other studies are needed to describe the physiological mechanisms that explain these alterations”, argues Laura Baena.