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KMID : 1143420210140201352
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Public Health Weekly Report
2021 Volume.14 No. 20 p.1352 ~ p.1362
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Physical and psychological changes during menopausal transition: a prospective cohort study of middle-aged Korean women
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NamGoung Sun-Ju
Chang Yoo-Soo
Cho Ju-Hee
Ryu Seung-Ho
Lim Nam-Kyoo
Park Hyun-Young
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Abstract
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The vast majority of the female population experience extensive physical/psychological shifts during their menopausal
transition(i.e., perimenopause). Although these changes can gradually develop by complex menopausal stages, menopausal research considering each menopausal stage is relatively scarce in Korea. Previous studies were limited by cross-sectional design, resulting in ambiguous temporal relationships between menopausal stages and risk factors. Therefore, a prospective cohort study of middle-aged Korean women was planned to better understand the time-course of physical/ psychological health indicators including chronic diseases and their risk factors across menopausal stages. In this study, a total of 5,246 middle aged (42-52 years old) were recruited from 2014 to 2018. The average follow-up period was short (3.0±1.68 years) and only a small proportion (about 15%) of the female participants experienced menopause, which required further long-term follow-up to allow for all participants to reach menopause. At the time of writing (2021), most participants experienced early menopausal transition. At this stage in the study, the results of the population were
analyzed. Menopause-related symptoms, previously considered to occur at menopause were more frequently observed in
women at early menopausal transition than those at the pre-menopausal stage. This trend was observed in overall
menopause-specific quality of life (MENQOL) and in four specific symptom domains (vasomotor symptoms, psychosocial
symptoms, physical symptoms, and genitourinary symptoms). Vasomotor symptoms, a cardinal climacteric symptom, were more frequently observed in women with obesity, abdominal obesity, metabolically unhealthy status, abnormal lipid
profiles, and hypertension than in those without. Also, an analysis of the impact of health behaviors on vasomotor
symptoms indicated that no drinking, no smoking, and a high level of physical activity appear to be beneficial for reducing
vasomotor symptoms. This ongoing study with further long-term follow-up is expected to provide a foundation to health
policies regarding the prevention and management of these symptoms, contributing to improving female middle-age quality of life and long-term outcomes.
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KEYWORD
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Middle aged women, Quality of life, MENQOL, Middle aged women cohort
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