Urban-rural differences in epidemiology and risk factors of menopause syndrome in middle-aged Chinese women

Abstract

Objective: To compare the prevalence and severity of menopausal symptoms and investigate their associated factors among rural and urban middle-aged Chinese women.Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional study of 4,580 urban and 2,729 rural randomly sampled participants aged 40 to 55 years in Gansu Province, China, was conducted. Questionnaires assessing the sociodemographic information and menstrual and reproductive histories of the participants were administered. The modified Kupperman scale was used to assess the presence and severity of menopausal symptoms. Binary and ordinal logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with the occurrence and severity of menopausal syndrome, respectively, according to the modified Kupperman Menopausal Index score rank.Results: The natural menopausal age of the rural women was significantly lower than that of the urban women (rural: 47.22, urban: 47.98; P < 0.05). Furthermore, rural women had a higher prevalence (rural: 56.35%, urban: 43.47%) and severity (rural: 11.40%, urban: 6.61%) of menopausal syndrome than the urban women ( P < 0.05). For both the urban and rural women, the prevalence and severity of most menopausal symptoms increased as menopause progressed. The three most prevalent symptoms in both the urban and rural women were fatigue (rural: 70.43%, urban: 68.19%), muscle/ joint pain (rural: 62.84%, urban: 59.32%), and vertigo (rural: 57.42%, urban: 47.44%). Positive associations between menopausal symptoms and age, residence, body mass index, level of education, time of pregnancy, menstrual cycle, and presence of chronic diseases were observed.Conclusions: Rural women experience more frequent and severe menopausal syndrome than do urban women.

Prevalence of menopausal symptoms and attitudes towards menopausal hormone therapy in women aged 40–60 years: a cross-sectional study

“…We analysed the influencing factors of menopausal symptoms and found that women living in urban areas, with a positive mentality, a high sexual intercourse frequency, and regular physical exercise had a lower incidence of menopausal-related symptoms, which was consistent with the findings of Wang [ 25 ] and AN [ 26 ]. Women living in rural areas have fewer opportunities to receive menopause-related health education, have less understanding of the menopausal period, and cannot seek medical attention in a timely manner when menopausal symptoms occur, which in turn increases the possibility of menopausal symptoms [ 27 ].…”

Cardiometabolic disease risk factors in pre- and postmenopausal women from four sub-Saharan African countries: A cross-sectional study

“…In addition, a study from Poland comparing rural to urban postmenopausal women, demonstrated a higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome in the rural (70 %) than the urban group (22 %) [ 33 ]. Furthermore, two recent studies from Mexico [ 34 ] and China [ 35 ] have demonstrated that age at menopause is lower in rural than urban women. Earlier age at menopause is known to be associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease [ 36 ].…”

“…Earlier age at menopause is known to be associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease [ 36 ]. The study from China also showed that rural women had a higher prevalence of menopausal symptoms and that these were associated with a higher risk of non-communicable diseases [ 35 ]. These studies suggest than rural residence may be associated with a higher risk of CMDs in postmenopausal women, but longitudinal studies are required to determine whether the menopause transition is differentially associated with CMD risk in rural and urban populations.…”

Healthy Aging in Menopause: Prevention of Cognitive Decline, Depression and Dementia through Physical Exercise

“…It should be noted that, as life expectancy increases, women live with menopause for about one-third of their lives. It is estimated that by 2030, a total of 1.2 billion women will be menopausal or postmenopausal [22][23][24][25].…”