Earlier Menopause Tied to Poorer Self-Perceived Work Ability

TUESDAY, March 26, 2024 (HealthDay News) — An earlier menopausal transition is associated with poorer perceived work ability, according to a study published online in the April issue of Menopause.

Tiia Saarinen, from Oulu University Hospital in Finland, and colleagues examined the association between an advanced climacteric status at 46 years of age and current perceived work ability, the consequent two-year accumulation of disability and unemployment days, and the seven-year incidence of disability pensions. The analysis included 2,661 participants in the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966, with 46-year follow-up data.

The researchers found that climacteric women were more often smokers and had a lower level of education. For climacteric women, the risk for poor perceived work ability was higher (odds ratio, 1.41), as was the incidence for disability and unemployment days (incidence rate ratios, 1.09 and 1.16, respectively) compared with preclimacteric women when adjusting for smoking and education. Among climacteric women, the seven-year risk for disability pensions was elevated (hazard ratio, 1.72).

“This study showed that entering the menopause transition early is linked with poorer work ability and impaired long-term working life participation,” Stephanie Faubion, M.D., medical director of The Menopause Society, said in a statement. “These findings reinforce the importance of addressing bothersome menopause symptoms to optimize a woman”s quality of life, both personally and professionally.”

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