Comparative Study of Satisfaction and Acceptability between Using Menstrual Cup versus Sanitary Pads in Health Care Personnel: A Randomized Crossover Trial

Abstract

Background: In the past decade, menstrual cups (MC) have become increasingly popular in many countries but there was no previous reporting on MC usage in Thailand. Objective: To evaluate and compare the satisfaction and acceptability of using MC and sanitary pads (SP) in health care personnel (HCP). Materials and Methods: Participants were HCP in Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital who were willing to participate in the study between October 2019 and March 2020. They were randomly assigned into groups A and B. During the first three cycles of menstruation, participants in group A and B used SP and MC, respectively. In the later three cycles of menstruation, they were switched from SP to MC and vice versa. The demographic and menstrual characteristics were recorded. Satisfaction was evaluated by using the five-point Likert scale. Acceptability of MC usage was recorded on the sixth cycle questionnaire. Results: Ninety-eight HCP were recruited and equally divided into two groups (A and B). Acceptability for MC was significantly lower than SP (89 versus 100 percent, respectively). Participants who had regular sexual intercourse had more acceptability with MC than those who had no regular intercourse (98.4 versus 68.7 percent, respectively). Participants reported more significant satisfaction for MC than SP in terms of leakage prevention, cleaning, odor prevention, land activity, daily activity, comfortable sleep, and overall satisfaction. Contact dermatitis associated with MC was less than with SP with a statistically significant difference. Conclusion: Acceptability for MC was lower than SP. MC’s acceptability was preferred among HCPs with regular sexual intercourse. MC had higher satisfaction and less side effects than SP. Keywords: Acceptability, Menstrual cup, Menstruation, Sanitary pads, Satisfaction