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Menarche and Dysmenorrhea

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Girls at Puberty

Abstract

Menarche is one of the more dramatic signs of female puberty. It occurs late in puberty; for example, menarche occurs during Tanner Stage 4 in two-thirds of females, and in another stage for the other one-third. Tanner staging or classification of sex maturity rating is the clinical determination of secondary sex characteristics for ascertaining developmental age (see Daniel, Chapter 3). Staging of secondary sex characteristics is a relatively convenient and practical method for determining developmental age. Developmental age is superior to chronological age as a predictor for many hormonal, biochemical, and behavioral characteristics during adolescence (Gross and Duke, 1980; Rauh, 1976).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Division of Adolescent Medicine, Michael Reese Hospital, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, 60616, USA

    Jerry R. Klein

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, 94305, USA

    Iris F. Litt

Authors
  1. Jerry R. Klein
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  2. Iris F. Litt
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for the Study of Exceptional Children, Educational Testing Service, 08541, Princeton, New Jersey, USA

    Jeanne Brooks-Gunn

  2. Department of Pediatrics, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, 10019, New York, New York, USA

    Jeanne Brooks-Gunn

  3. Department of Individual and Family Studies, College of Human Development, The Pennsylvania State University, 16802, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA

    Anne C. Petersen

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© 1983 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Klein, J.R., Litt, I.F. (1983). Menarche and Dysmenorrhea. In: Brooks-Gunn, J., Petersen, A.C. (eds) Girls at Puberty. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0354-9_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0354-9_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4899-0356-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4899-0354-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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