An Audit of Amenorrhea in a Nigerian Tertiary Health Institution

Background: Amenorrhea is the absence of menstruation during puberty or later in life. It is a symptom that result due to several factors that range from genetic abnormalities to endocrine disorders, psychological, environmental and structural abnormalities.

Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence and causes of amenorrhea among women at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching, Sokoto, Nigeria.

Materials and Methods: This is a five-year retrospective study of cases of amenorrhea managed at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto. Information was extracted from patients’ case notes and data was managed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20. The results are presented in texts, tables and charts.

Results: There were 140 cases of amenorrhea managed over the study period out of 1,742 gynaecological consultations, giving a prevalence rate of 8%. Among them, 86% (104/121) have secondary amenorrhea and 14% (17/121), have primary amenorrhea. The major cause of secondary amenorrhea is Asherman’s syndrome in 42.3% (44/104) and primary amenorrhea is mainly due to outflow tract obstruction, 64.7% (11/17) among the subjects with primary amenorrhea.

Conclusion: Secondary amenorrhea is the most common type of amenorrhea in our environment and the most prevalent cause is outflow tract obstruction for both primary and secondary amenorrhea.