Acceptability, usage, and efficacy of menstrual cups: A cross-sectional study among the women of Kochi municipal corporation in Kerala

Objectives Menstrual hygiene demands the provision of affordable and safe practices for women to manage their menstrual cycles. Menstrual Cup (M-Cup) is one such reusable menstrual hygiene device made of medical-grade silicone material, which can be inserted into the vagina. Even though M-Cup has several advantages compared to other menstrual management methods, it has not yet gained proper acceptability among women due to a lack of knowledge and awareness, non-availability in rural areas, and mainly social and cultural issues associated with a vaginal-inserting device. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted by distributing M-Cups free of cost to women of menstruating age in Kochi Municipal Corporation to analyze the level of acceptability to adopt it as a hygienic sanitary product, and the problems beneficiaries have faced during its usage. Methods The study was undertaken among women belonging to the age group of 21- 52. The study used quantitative and qualitative methods to collect data. Simple random sampling was the methodology that was adopted for the study, where data were collected from 750 beneficiaries within the sample frame of 5000 beneficiaries. Results Out of 704 respondents, 596 respondents were M-Cup users, while 108 respondents were not using M-Cups. The fear of the M-Cup getting stuck in the vagina was one of the major fears faced by the respondents (42.8%). Fear of getting an infection (15.1%), pain felt during the insertion of the M-Cup (13.26%), the pain felt while removing the M-Cup (13.34%), and fear of leakage (12.856%) were some of the other major problems during the initial usage of M-Cups. Conclusion The acceptance level of M-Cups was high among the disposable pad users, as they found M-Cups convenient and economical, which enhanced their freedom to carry out day-to-day tasks. Effective training eliminates doubts regarding the usage and fear, along with the social stigma associated with an insertion device like the M-cup.