Perspectiva e experiência de mulheres e médicos ginecologistas em relação ao exercício físico como forma de lidar com a síndrome pré-mestrual = : Perspectives and experiences of women and gynecologists regarding physical exercise as a form of dealind with premenstural syndrome / Perspectives and experiences of women and gynecologists regarding physical exercise as a form of dealind with premenstural syndrome

Maria Amélia Ralio Higinio

Objective: To evaluate the perspective and experience of Brazilian women regarding the practice of physical exercise as a mean to deal with the symptoms of the premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and of gynecologists with respect to recommending this practice for the same purpose. Subjects and Methods: Descriptive study based on a secondary analysis of quantitative and qualitative data collected for the study "Premenstrual syndrome: Brazilian women, men and physicians perspectives and attitudes". Data of 948 women who declared they had at least one SPM symptom, and of 48 gynecologists were analysed. All participants, women and physicians were selected in six major Brazilian cities: Campinas (São Paulo state, southeast region), Canoas (Rio Grande do Sul state, south region), Salvador e Camaçari (Bahia state, northeast region) Manaus (Amazonas state, north region), Campo Grande (Mato Grosso do Sul state, central west region) and Brasília (Federal District). Women responded a structured questionnaire and qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with gynecologists. The possible association between the following variables and the practice of physical exercise to deal with the symptoms of PMS was evaluated: socioeconomic level, age, schooling, marital status, ethnicity, religion, paid employment, reproductive history, whether PMS interfered with the woman s marital life, family life and working and leisure activities, medical consultations motivated by PMS symptoms, and guidance received at this consultation, including whether she was advised to practice physical exercise. For the qualitative data, thematic content analysis was performed based on the following categories of analysis: the perception of women s principal complaints regarding PMS, the causes of PMS, ways of dealing with women with PMS, recommendations/treatments to improve symptoms, and the physician s perspective in relation to the efficacy of recommendations/treatments. Results: Of the 948 women, who reported PMS symptoms, 8% reported having performed physical exercise to deal with these symptoms and slightly over one-third had consulted a physician. Of the women who consulted a doctor, 21.9% reported that they had received the indication to perform physical exercise of which 70% reported that they had followed the indication. The majority of the gynecologists reported recommending the practice of physical exercise to women consulting with PMS symptoms and considered the practice of physical exercise an effective tool for minimizing PMS symptoms. However, some believed that women fail to comply fully with this recommendation, since it requires changes in their lifestyle. Conclusions: Women and gynecologists attributed a positive value to the practice of physical exercise as a way of dealing with PMS symptoms; however, the proportion of women who adopted this practice was small. Gynecologists recommended the practice of physical exercises as part of a set of guidelines aimed at healthy living, however this recommendation was usually combined with drug or hormonal treatments.

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