title: Age at menarche amongst school girls in a high altitude Nigerian town.
abstract: Menarche, the first menstrual period is believed to be influenced by many factors including altitude. The data of 331 school girls in Jos (1,300 m above sea level), a high altitude Nigerian town, that attained menarche between January 1989 were analysed. The mean menarcheal age for these school girls is 13.21 +/- 1.01 years. This value was not significantly different from 13.02 +/- 1.28 years found amongst school girls at Calabar (20 m above sea level) a Nigerian sea level resident sample. Perhaps, Jos is not situated at a high enough altitude to significantly affect the age at which menarche is attained.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Jos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria.
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Ekele
authors.forename: E U
authors.initials: EU
authors.lastname: Udoeyop
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Otubu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D000531:Altitude; D001827:Body Height; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008572:Menarche; D009549:Nigeria; D012016:Reference Values; D013334:Students; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014504:Urban Health