Publication:

Age of menopause and determining factors in rural Telangana

Background Menopause is the cessation of menstruation for one year at the end of reproductive life. The average age of menopause differs in different regions. Early menopause is a high risk for cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, and late menopause for breast, and genital cancers. As the age of natural menopause is affected by many factors and early and late menopause cause life-threatening diseases, the determination of the age of menopause is important for different geographical regions.

Methods This prospective cross-sectional study was conducted in the outpatient department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Mamata Medical College and General Hospital, Khammam, Telangana, India, over 09 months from 01 April 2024 to 31 December 2024. Women with natural menopause were asked pre-determined questions like name, age, occupation, education, etc. and answers were noted. Iatrogenic and premature menopause or unwilling women, were excluded. Descriptive statistical analysis and a p-value test were used to find the age of menopause and co-relation with determinants. Medcalc-24 was used for calculations. p-value< 0.05 was considered significant. The outcome was discussed critically and compared with other study reports.

Results The average age of menopause was 47.05 +/- 04.39 years. A strong co-relation of the age of menopause with occupation (p-0.0002) and marital status (p-0.0003) was observed. The same co-relation with body weight (p-0.0232) and parity (p-0.0114) was significant. No significant co-relation was detected between the age of menopause and menarche or with education.

Conclusions The age of natural menopause is an important indicator of health in postmenopausal women and varies in different geographical regions. It is required to formulate health strategies for a healthy postmenopausal life of women.