The “lived” experience of menstruating women commencing anticoagulants

TY - JOUR

T1 - The “lived” experience of menstruating women commencing anticoagulants

AU - Sheikh, Umber

AU - Ding, Amally

AU - Nzelu, Obianuju

AU - Roberts, Lara

AU - Johns, Jemma

AU - Ross, Jackie

AU - Arya, Roopen

AU - Patel, Jignesh

N1 - Funding Information: We would like to thank the patients in our clinics, who shared their experience, volunteered, and participated in the interviews. This work is dedicated to Chandrika Patel. The PERIOD study was funded by the Department of Haematological Medicine, King's College Hospital. The PERIOD study received ethics committee approval from the South-West Bristol ethics committee. REC reference: 19/SW/0211. U.S. conducted the interviewed, conducted the analysis, and drafted the manuscript. A.D. conducted the analysis and drafted the manuscript. O.N. contributed to the study design and reviewed and edited the manuscript. L.N.R. contributed to study design and reviewed and edited the manuscript. J.J. contributed to study design and reviewed and edited the manuscript. J.R. contributed to the study design and reviewed and edited the manuscript. R.A. contributed to the study design and reviewed and edited the manuscript. J.P.P. contributed to the study design, recruited participants, contributed to analysis, and drafted the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript. L.N.R. has received speaker fees and travel grant from Bayer and an investigator-initiated research grant and travel grant from Sanofi. R.A. reports grants from Bayer, personal fees from Bayer and Sanofi, and nonfinancial support from Bayer and Sanofi. Funding Information: The PERIOD study was funded by the Department of Haematological Medicine, King’s College Hospital. Funding Information: L.N.R. has received speaker fees and travel grant from Bayer and an investigator-initiated research grant and travel grant from Sanofi . R.A. reports grants from Bayer , personal fees from Bayer and Sanofi , and nonfinancial support from Bayer and Sanofi . Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s)

PY - 2023/4/17

Y1 - 2023/4/17

N2 - BackgroundAlthough there is increased recognition that many menstruating women commenced on anticoagulants experience heavy menstrual bleeding, little research has been published describing what women go through and actually experience.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to understand the “lived” experience of menstruating women commencing anticoagulants.MethodsWe undertook a qualitative study using semistructured interviews. Women who had taken part in the parent PERIOD study and expressed an interest in an in-depth interview were recruited. Interviews were conducted online, and transcripts were generated through MS Teams. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Ethics committee approval: REC reference: 19/SW/0211.ResultsA total of 15 participants were interviewed. The median age of the participants was 36 years (range, 20-49 years). The following 7 primary themes emerged from the interviews: (1) information received when commencing anticoagulation, (2) mood, (3) strategies used to manage heavy bleeding, (4) social/family life, (5) work life, (6) finances, and (7) multiple health issues—with saturation of themes achieved following 9 interviews. Women affected by heavy menstrual bleeding experienced a negative change in their work/social life and mood.ConclusionHeavy menstrual bleeding experienced by women commencing anticoagulants has a significant impact on their lives. Recognized measures should be employed to support and minimize the problem for menstruating people.

AB - BackgroundAlthough there is increased recognition that many menstruating women commenced on anticoagulants experience heavy menstrual bleeding, little research has been published describing what women go through and actually experience.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to understand the “lived” experience of menstruating women commencing anticoagulants.MethodsWe undertook a qualitative study using semistructured interviews. Women who had taken part in the parent PERIOD study and expressed an interest in an in-depth interview were recruited. Interviews were conducted online, and transcripts were generated through MS Teams. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Ethics committee approval: REC reference: 19/SW/0211.ResultsA total of 15 participants were interviewed. The median age of the participants was 36 years (range, 20-49 years). The following 7 primary themes emerged from the interviews: (1) information received when commencing anticoagulation, (2) mood, (3) strategies used to manage heavy bleeding, (4) social/family life, (5) work life, (6) finances, and (7) multiple health issues—with saturation of themes achieved following 9 interviews. Women affected by heavy menstrual bleeding experienced a negative change in their work/social life and mood.ConclusionHeavy menstrual bleeding experienced by women commencing anticoagulants has a significant impact on their lives. Recognized measures should be employed to support and minimize the problem for menstruating people.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85152574303&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.rpth.2023.100136

DO - 10.1016/j.rpth.2023.100136

M3 - Article

SN - 2475-0379

VL - 7

JO - Research and practice in thrombosis and haemostasis

JF - Research and practice in thrombosis and haemostasis

IS - 3

M1 - 100136

ER -