Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF ) Freely available
Right arrow An erratum has been published
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (22)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Li, C.
Right arrow Articles by Nerbrand, C.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Li, C.
Right arrow Articles by Nerbrand, C.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Human Reproduction, Vol. 17, No. 5, 1379-1385, May 2002
© 2002 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology

Health profile of middle-aged women: The Women's Health in the Lund Area (WHILA) study

Cairu Li1, Kittisak Wilawan2, Göran Samsioe1,5, Jonas Lidfeldt3, Carl-David Agardh4 and Christina Nerbrand3

1 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Lund University Hospital, S-221 85 Sweden, 2 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Pramongkutklao Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand, 3 Department of Community Medicine, Lund University Hospital and 4 Department of Endocrinology, University Hospital MAS, Malmö, Sweden

BACKGROUND: Middle-aged women experience various health-related problems. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impacts of menopause status and hormone intervention on women's health. METHODS: In an ongoing, population-based study, 4943 women, born 1935 to 1945 and living in the Lund area of Southern Sweden, were included in this analysis. They completed a generic questionnaire pertaining to socio-demographic background and current health-related symptoms. Among the cohort, 9% of women were pre-menopausal (PM), 52% were post-menopausal without hormone replacement therapy (PMO) and 39% were current hormone replacement therapy users (PMT). RESULTS: Hot flushes and vaginal dryness were strongly related to menopausal status. The prevalence of somatic symptoms worsened progressively from the groups of PM to PMO to PMT. The most abundant complaints were headache and muscle–skeletal–joint problems. A total of 85% of women experienced psychological problems. Contrary to our expectation, a poorer profile of psychological health was found in the PMT group when compared with the PMO group. CONCLUSIONS: The high prevalence of symptoms in middle-aged women could be attributed to age, hormonal influence as well as personality.

Key words: HRT/menopause status/middle-aged women/psycho-somatic symptoms/vasomotor symptoms

5 To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: goran.samsioe{at}gyn.lu.se


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Br. J. Radiol.Home page
C J Whitaker, C M Kelly, K Faulkner, and E C Stamp
Influence of menopausal status and use of hormone replacement therapy on radiation dose from mammography in routine breast screening.
Br. J. Radiol., July 1, 2006; 79(943): 597 - 602.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Arch Intern MedHome page
M. M. Ohayon
Severe hot flashes are associated with chronic insomnia.
Arch Intern Med, June 26, 2006; 166(12): 1262 - 1268.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Scand J Public HealthHome page
J. Rundberg, J. Lidfeldt, C. Nerbrand, G. Samsioe, A. Romelsjo, and A. Ojehagen
Few middle-aged women with severe mental symptoms use psychotropic drugs: The Women's Health in Lund Area (WHILA) Study
Scand J Public Health, October 1, 2005; 33(5): 384 - 391.
[Abstract] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.