Premature Ovarian Insufficiency Tied to More Menopausal Symptoms

MONDAY, Feb. 1, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Women with premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) experience a high prevalence of menopausal symptoms, according to a study published online Jan. 18 in Menopause.

Yizhou Huang, M.D., from the Zhejiang University School of Medicine in Hangzhou, China, and colleagues evaluated the prevalence, severity, and associated factors of menopausal symptoms in women with POI. The analysis included 293 women seen at an outpatient clinic.

The researchers found that the most prevalent symptoms were mood swings (73.4 percent), insomnia (58.7 percent), sexual problems (58.7 percent), and fatigue (57.3 percent). Among the most frequently reported symptoms were moderate-to-severe mood swings (23.9 percent), formication (17.4 percent), and hot flashes/sweating (17.1 percent). Women with POI exhibited significantly higher risks for fatigue (odds ratio [OR], 1.42), melancholia (OR, 3.12), mood swings (OR, 3.57), and insomnia (OR, 1.41) compared with women with natural menopause. Additionally, women with POI had significantly lower risks for moderate-to-severe sexual problems (0.40) and any and moderate-to-severe muscle or joint pain (OR, 0.41 and 0.45, respectively). There was an independent association between living in urban areas and higher gravidity with menopausal symptoms in women with POI.

“Women with POI tended to have more distressing menopausal symptoms compared with women with natural menopause,” the authors write.

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