title: Development of a functional and emotional measure of dysmenorrhea (FEMD) in Chinese university women.
abstract: Primary dysmenorrhea, or cramps, causes pain, limits activity, and increases emotional tension in young women, but its measurement has not received enough research attention. We have developed a functional and emotional measure of dysmenorrhea (FEMD, 14 items), and trialed it with a sample of 833 Chinese university women. Two factors (scales) were extracted by principal component analysis (PCA) and subsequently approved by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The two scales were intercorrelated and were correlated with experienced pain severity and, to a lesser degree, with the depressive tendency. We have demonstrated that FEMD has stable components that might help measure dysmenorrhea-related dysfunctions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Lixia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Huangfu
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chai
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Huafen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Xiaohui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zou
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology; D004412:Dysmenorrhea / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D004644:Emotions; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009120:Muscle Cramp / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013334:Students; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014495:Universities; D055815:Young Adult