Disparities in menstrual hygiene management between urban and rural schoolgirls in Northeast, Ethiopia

Introduction: Even though menstruation is a normal biological process, adolescents are facing managing their menstruation when they are at school. It causes girls to miss their class on average three days every month. Studies in some countries showed that the magnitude of menstrual hygiene management problems is higher in rural adolescent girls, but little is known in the Ethiopia context. The objective of this study was to assess and compare menstrual hygiene management practices among rural and urban schoolgirls, Northeast, Ethiopia. Methods: An institution-based comparative cross-sectional study was employed among 1078 schoolgirls (539 urban and 539 rural) from February to March 2020. The participants were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique. A structured self-administrative questionnaire and observational checklist were used for data collection. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analysis with a 95% confidence interval was employed. A P- value less than 0.05 was used to declare statistical significance. Results: Overall, the magnitude of good menstrual hygiene practice was 52.9% (95%CI: 50.3%-56.5%), which was 65.9% (95% CI: 62.8%-70.7%) among urban and 39.9% (95% CI: 36.2%-44.6%) among rural schoolgirls. Among urban schoolgirls, the odds of good menstrual hygiene management practice was higher for girls aged below 18 years (AOR = 1.58, 95%CI: 1.05–2.39), learned about menstrual hygiene at school (AOR = 1.89, 95%CI: 1.21–2.97), heard about menstrual hygiene before menarche (AOR = 4.98, 95%CI: 2.71–9.13), and discussed menstrual hygiene with parents (AOR = 2.56, 95%CI: 1.25–5.27). Whereas, the odds of good menstrual hygiene management practice was higher among those who were knowledgeable on menstrual hygiene (AOR = 5.47, 95%CI: 3.68–8.12), those who learned about menstrual hygiene at school (AOR = 1.75, 95%CI: 1.13–2.70), and girls who heard about menstrual hygiene before menarche (AOR = 3.34, 95%CI: 1.44–7.76) in rural schoolgirls. Conclusions: Though the overall menstrual hygiene practice was low, it was relatively better among urban schoolgirls. This calls for more effort to solve these problems and achieve sustainable development goals. Therefore, education and awareness creation on menstrual hygiene for schoolgirls, even before menarche at both settings should be strengthened. Encouraging parent-adolescent discussion on menstrual hygiene would have paramount importance, particularly to urban schoolgirls.