Endocrine Disease/Disorder: Menopause
Menopause is a natural biological process that is regulated by the endocrine system which occurs at the end of a woman's reproductive years. The concomitant decline in estrogen and progesterone production that occurs during menopause can result in a range of physical and emotional symptoms, while other hormones also play a role. Although menopause is a natural part of the aging process, it can have a profound impact on womens health and quality of life. Moreover, because all women experience menopause, developing a better understanding concerning the relationship between the endocrine system and menopause is crucial for managing symptoms and supporting women's health during this transitional period in their lives. To this end, the purpose of this paper is to provide a review of the literature concerning the relationship between the endocrine system and menopause, including an overview of the physiological changes that occur during menopause, the role of hormones in menopause, and the management of menopausal symptoms.
Overview of Menopause
Menopause marks the time in womens lives when their menstrual cycles stop. Although menstrual cycles can become disrupted prior to the onset of menopause, the condition is diagnosed when there has not been a menstrual period for 12 months (Menopause Overview, 2023) but it is defined as the end of menstruation due to the loss of ovarian follicular activity (Dawn, 2022, p. 253). The average age of onset of perimenopause, the period in which womens hormone production begins to fluctuate, is currently 51 years in the United Sates, meaning that the condition can begin when women are still in their 40s or even earlier, but the production of the hormones that cause menopause typically begins to decline during the early 30s (Dawn, 2022). Even though menopause is a natural biological condition that affects all women at some point in their lives, its physical and emotional symptoms can have a severe impact on multiple quality of life factors due to the decreased production of hormones (Menopause Overview) as discussed further below.
The Role of Hormones in Menopause
The change in ovarian follicular activity and the associated decreased hormone production that occurs during perimenopause results in infertility, but it...
…(Menopause Overview, 2023). The hormone therapies that are used to treat such symptoms include systemic estrogen alone or together with progestogen as well as oral and transdermal estrogen. Nonhormonal treatments include the use of paroxetine and venlafaxine which have proven efficacy in reducing the frequency of menopausal transition symptoms (Crandall et al., 2023).Conclusion
The research showed that menopause is a natural biological condition in women where their menstrual cycles stop due to the loss of ovarian follicular activity, typically occurring around age 51 in the US. The hormonal changes that occur during perimenopause, which can last up to 14 years, cause a variety of symptoms such as hot flushes, fatigue, joint and muscle pain, headache, urinary problems, depression, and mood swings. The age of onset of perimenopause is decreasing, which may be due to environmental factors such as endocrine disrupting chemicals. Finally, the research also showed that there are various treatments available for perimenopausal symptoms, including lifestyle changes and hormone therapies such as estrogen and progestogen. Nonhormonal treatments such as paroxetine and venlafaxine also have proven efficacy in reducing menopausal…
References
Crandall, C. J., Mehta, J. M., & Manson, J. E. (2023). Management of Menopausal Symptoms: A Review. JAMA, 329(5), 405–420.
Dawn, D. (2022). A Qualitative Study Exploring Post-menopausal Women’s Perceptions and Experiences of Menopause. Indian Journal of Health & Wellbeing, 13(2), 253–257.
Goodman, N. F. et al. (2011). American association of clinical endocrinologists’ medical guidelines for clinical practice for the diagnosis and treatment of menopause. Endocrine Practice, 17, 1-25Levine, L., & Hall, J. E. (2023). Does the environment affect menopause? A review of the effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals on menopause. Climacteric, 1–10.
Menopause Overview. (2023). Mayo Clinics. Retrieved from https://www.mayoclinic.org/ diseases-conditions/menopause/symptoms-causes/syc-20353397.
Menopausal transition. (2023). National Institute on Aging. Retrieved from https://www. nia.nih.gov/health/what-menopause#:~:text=The%20menopausal% 20transition% 20most%20often,begins%2C%20and%20race%20and%20ethnicity.
self-absorption. This becomes a time of self-reflection and if all bodes well a time of increased creativity (Erickson & Erickson, 1997). However, should there be increasing family or financial stress, if there has been problems with their husband or children or they find themselves with looming bankruptcies, the likelihood of depression increases tremendously (Robinson, et.al., 2001) and the maladaptations of overextension and rejectivity (Erickson & Erickson, 1997) can lead
Some of the more common tests include Estradiol, FSH and LH. Women can also request the assistance of obstetricians, who can identify changes in the vaginal lining as a result of decreasing levels of estrogen (National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2010). The highest concern with women is represented by the possibility of the menopause symptoms to be in fact indicative of a more severe health problem. This concern is best
While some people may also seek treatment for minor symptoms like hot flashes, it is when more serious symptoms occur that women should see a doctor. Osteoporosis occurs in the first few years of menopause whereby rapid bone loss is experienced thus making bones both weak and brittle. Many treatments are available including drugs such as Boniva. It is thus extremely important to consume more calcium during these years
Menopause: A Short History From Human Anatomy and Physiology, Spence and Mason, 2nd Edition from 1983, comes this description of Menopause. At about age 50, the ovarian and menstrual cycles gradually become irregular. Ovulation fails to occur during many of the irregular cycles and in most women the cycles cease altogether over the next several months or at most, a few years. The cessation of the menstrual cycle is referred to as
Although many of the symptoms commonly associated with menopause would suggest that women undergoing the change of life are no longer interested in sex, nothing could be farther from the truth. Many postmenopausal women "find it liberating to stop worrying about pregnancy and periods," (Mayo Clinic 2010). The BBC (2010) agrees: "some women find they enjoy sex more after the menopause. Freedom from worry about unwanted pregnancy can release
transitions and symptoms that menopause can cause. The writer also explores things that can be done to ease the transition of menopause. There were five sources used to complete this paper. When mankind was created, somebody made a mistake. As it stands menopause hits women right about the time that her children enter their late teen years. What a recipe for disaster. Menopause is a process that is either reached
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