Study of the effect of curcumin in patients with primary dysmenorrhea

Abstract

Introduction: Dysmenorrhea is a common problem experienced by women in their reproductive years. NSAIDs and acetaminophen are the mainstays of drug therapy. Curcumin is the principal curcuminoid of the spice turmeric which have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects. Inflammation is one of the causes of primary dysmenorrhea. Therefore, in this study, the effect of curcumin on primary dysmenorrhea were evaluated. Objective: evaluation of the effects of curcumin in patients with primary dysmenorrhea Method: This study was a single-blind randomized clinical trial on 80 patients with primary dysmenorrhea. The severity of dysmenorrhea were measured by visual analog scale (VAS) and the need of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) was studied at the beginning of the study, one and two months after the intervention. Patients were randomly assigned into two groups of 40 patients (control group and intervention group). Control group received just the first line therapy of dysmenorrhea including NSAIDs and acetaminophen but intervention group received two tablets of 500mg curcuma daily two days before menstruation untill three days after, NSAIDS and acetaminophen for two successive cycles. Data analyzed with SPSS version 23. Results: Pain severity was not significantly different between the control and intervention groups, but in both groups we saw a decrease in pain severity, which was greater in the intervention group. After adjusting for the confounders, the pain severity decreased between the two groups and there was a significant difference(P value<0.05). The number of mefenamic acid and acetaminophen used, decreased one month after the study and there was a significant difference between the two groups(P value=0.033). Intra-group studies show that there was also a significant difference in the severity of pain and the number of ibuprofen use in the intervention group) P value<0.001 and P value=0.002). Conclusion: In our study, curcumin reduced pain severity and the number of mefenamic acid, acetaminophen and ibuprofen used in primary dysmenorrhea.