Update on Age at Menarche in Italy: Toward the Leveling Off of the Secular Trend

Franco Rigon, Luigi Bianchin, Sergio Bernasconi, Gianni Bona, Mauro Bozzola, Fabio Buzi, Alessandro Cicognani, Carlo De Sanctis, Vincenzo De Sanctis, Giorgio Radetti, Luciano Tatò, Giorgio Tonini, Egle Perissinotto

Risultato della ricerca: Contributo su rivistaArticolo in rivistapeer review

Abstract

Purpose: To update the information on age at menarche in the Italian population and to verify the influence of genetic, nutritional, and socioeconomic factors on menarcheal age. Recent studies suggest that the magnitude of the secular trend toward an earlier age at menarche is slackening in industrialized countries. Methods: This multicenter study was conducted on a large, population-based sample of Italian high school girls (n = 3,783), using a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire was used to gather information on the girls, including demography, anthropometry, menarcheal date, regularity of menses, behavioral habits, and physical activity. The questionnaire was also used to gather information on parents, including demography and mothers' and sisters' menarcheal ages. The median age at menarche and its 95% confidence interval were estimated by means of Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. To identify the independent predictive factors of age at menarche, multivariate mixed-effects models were applied. Results: The median age at menarche of the subjects was 12.4 years (95% confidence interval: 12.34-12.46). The girls had their first menses approximately one-quarter of a year (median-0.13) earlier than did their mothers (p < .0001). Among all variables, parents' birth area, body mass index, family size, and the mother's menarcheal age were significantly and independently associated with age at menarche. Conclusions: This study confirmed the reduction in the trend toward earlier menarche in Italy. The results also confirmed that genetic and nutritional factors are strong markers for early menarche. Currently, socioeconomic factors do not seem to play as significant a role as in the past.

Lingua originaleInglese
pagine (da-a)238-244
Numero di pagine7
RivistaJournal of Adolescent Health
Volume46
Numero di pubblicazione3
DOI
Stato di pubblicazionePubblicato - mar 2010
Pubblicato esternamente

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