The Menstrual Disorder of Teenagers (MDOT) Study No. 2: Period ImPact and Pain Assessment (PIPPA) Tool Validation in a Large Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study of Australian Teenagers

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To validate the Period ImPact and Pain Assessment (PIPPA) self-screening tool for menstrual disturbance in teenagers. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Three senior high schools in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), Australia. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1066 girls between 15 and 19 years of age. INTERVENTIONS AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: A quantitative paper survey collected self-reports of menstrual bleeding patterns, typical and atypical symptoms, morbidities, and interference with daily activities. Multiple correspondence analysis was used to examine associations between PIPPA questions. Generalized linear models compared total score and subscores by validation criteria: pain, school absence, and body mass index (BMI). Receiver operating characteristic curves were used to evaluate the predictiveness of menstrual disturbance indicators by total PIPPA score. RESULTS: Reports of pain, interference, and concern within the PIPPA items and between both the MDOT and PIPPA questionnaires were significantly correlated (P < .0001). The indicator "missing school" was highly associated (P < .0001) with pain and interference. Obesity (BMI ≥30) was associated with higher PIPPA scores, as was underweight (BMI≤18.4). Where 0 = no disturbance, 5 = high disturbance, aggregated PIPPA scores found 75% scoring 0-2 (out of 5) and 25% scoring 3-5 (257/1037). High scores of 4 or 5 (out of 5) were 7% (72/1037) and 3.7% (38/1037), respectively. CONCLUSION: PIPPA is a valid screening tool for pain-related menstrual disturbance that affects functioning in young women. PIPPA subdomains of pain/interference have good validity relative to indicators of pain and interference and are responsive to age, BMI, and school absence differences.