Predictors of age at menopause and psychiatric symptoms among postmenopausal females in Jordan

Abstract

Objective

This study evaluated the impact of various factors on age at natural menopause as well as psychiatric symptoms including anxiety and depression among postmenopausal women in Jordan.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted and included females with natural menopause (n = 450). A structured interview-based questionnaire was used to collect data about subjects’ sociodemographics, health, reproductive and environmental factors. Hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) was used to assess psychiatric symptoms. Factors associated with age at natural menopause, depression, or anxiety were identified.

Results

The mean age at natural menopause was 49.5 ± 4.8 years. Mothers' age at menopause, the regularity of cycles, age at last pregnancy and diabetes were significant positive predictors of age at menopause (p < 0.05). The mean anxiety and depressive scores were 6.52 ± 4.26 and 6.77 ± 3.44 respectively. Age, high school education, being nonsmoker and breastfeeding history were inversely associated with anxiety but only cycle length and multiparous were positively associated with anxiety (p < 0.05). While education and being nonsmoker were negatively associated with depression, hypertension was a positive predictor.

Conclusions

The results reveal several environmental, health, and reproductive predictors of age at menopause or psychiatric symptoms among postmenopausal women in Jordan.

Keywords:

• Menopause
• age at menopause
• psychiatric symptoms
• predictors
• Jordan

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Deanship of Scientific Research at Jordan University of Science and Technology (grant number 520/2018).