ABSTRACT
Background and Aims
Menstrual health is a critical yet often overlooked component of public health, especially in low-resource, climate-vulnerable coastal regions. This study aimed to assess the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) related to menstruation among women and adolescent girls in East Kharia village under Paikgacha Upazila, Khulna District, Bangladesh, and to analyze the influence of key demographic variables on these KAP components.
Methods
A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted involving 120 female respondents systematically selected using Cochran’s formula to ensure adequate sample representation. Structured questionnaires containing validated binary and Likert-scale items were administered to capture KAP dimensions. Scores were computed to generate KAP indices and analyzed across demographic categories such as education level, occupation, marital status, and age group (women vs. adolescent girls).
Results
The study revealed moderately high knowledge levels across most groups, while attitudes and especially hygienic practices lagged behind. Manual laborers and participants with lower educational attainment showed notably poorer practices. Women demonstrated slightly higher attitude and practice scores than adolescent girls. The data underscore how educational background and occupation significantly shape menstrual health behaviors.
Conclusion
The findings highlight persistent gaps in menstrual health education and substantial demographic disparities in hygienic practices. This demographic-specific KAP profile provides essential evidence to design targeted menstrual health interventions tailored for climate-sensitive coastal areas of Bangladesh.