Dysmenorrhea, which begins approximately 1-2 years after the start of menstruation in
women, continues until the 40s, although it shows its effects more in adolescent female
students between the ages of 18-25. Dysmenorrhea pain, which is seen intermittently in
the form of contractions and cramps, is usually in the middle of the highest intensity
value. It is also emphasized that dysmenorrhea has important economic consequences. It
has been reported that the total healthcare costs of patients with primary dysmenorrhea
are greater than the healthcare costs of women without dysmenorrhea. In Japan, the total
healthcare costs of patients with primary dysmenorrhea were reported to be 2.2 times
greater than the healthcare costs of women without dysmenorrhea after adjusting for
baseline characteristics. Although dysmenorrhea is not a life-threatening condition, it
can cause a significant burden on individuals and communities, greatly affecting quality
of life and well-being. Both aerobic and core exercises reduce the severity of
dysmenorrhea, especially at young ages. It has been proven that core exercises are an
effective non-pharmacological method to reduce pain and are a cost-free pain-reducing
practice. Aerobic exercises are exercises that increase cardiopulmonary endurance
capacity by activating the circulatory and respiratory systems through rhythmic and
dynamic contraction of large muscle groups. In this study, a brisk walking program, which
is a type of aerobic exercise, will be created for adolescent students and its effects on
primary dysmenorrhea will be evaluated. Studies on this subject have concluded that
aerobic exercise has an effect on some menstrual symptoms of adolescent high school
female students, and that dysmenorrhea and heavy menstrual bleeding can be controlled or
prevented by performing these exercises regularly and continuously. Secondly, it has also
been found that aerobic exercises are positively related to the information processing
efficiency, attention, memory and cognitive control of adolescents. Although there is
limited evidence, it is thought that physical activity can have a positive effect on
improving academic performance, cognitive abilities and mental functions in children. It
has also been reported that aerobic exercises have a protective effect against the risk
of diseases (childhood obesity, asthma, etc.) by keeping the heart rate and weight
control low and improving cardiovascular health. Regular aerobic exercises, especially in
adolescents; It leads to hormonal changes by increasing functional work capacity, daily
life activity level and quality of life in individuals with systematic diseases and
reducing psychological stress. These hormonal changes include the fact that aerobic
exercises increase the release of endorphins. Increased endorphin release causes an
increase in pain threshold. For this reason, by reducing dysmenorrhea pain with the
aerobic and core exercises will use in the study; It is aimed to increase the quality of
life of high school-aged adolescents by increasing the duration of class attendance,
drug-free pain control, desire to study, socialization and exam success, and to improve
adolescent health with applications in the field of physiotherapy. The core can be
defined as the trunk or the region that provides the connection between the legs and
arms. This region, which is mentioned as the central region of the body, is the point
where the stabilization of the abdominal, paraspinal and gluteal muscles, consisting of
the muscles, nerves, skeleton and other connective tissues that form the spine, pelvis,
abdominal cavity and upper structures, is critical for optimal performance and is also
defined as the lumbopelvic region. Core exercises are; These are exercises that include
exercises to train the muscles that control and stabilize the movements of the abdominal,
lumbar and gluteal regions. Core exercises are exercises that help increase muscle
balance and strength. These exercises play an active role in ensuring that muscles move
correctly. Strengthening the core area is important not only for sports performance but
also for maintaining proper body posture. These exercises aim to control balance, improve
upper extremity functions, ensure proper posture, increase stabilization, and minimize
pain in the pelvic and abdominal areas. The reason why investigators chose this topic is
that although there are studies in the literature evaluating the effects of core and
aerobic exercises separately on dysmenorrhea, there are no studies on the effects of
these two exercises on dysmenorrhea with a combined program. In addition, as the negative
effects of menstrual pain on high school-age young people are seen as a normal problem,
this causes an increase in the number of primary dysmenorrhea cases, an increase in the
use of pharmacological supplements, and a negative impact on the psychological and social
quality of life.
