Menopause in Chile occurs in women, on average, at 49 years of age, which means that they must endure a considerable amount of time with menopause and menopause, plus other chronic diseases.
Therefore, it is important that women go to control at this stage of life, which is characterized by discomfort, sometimes mild, but also by the serious complications that can occur, with important repercussions on the physical and psychological health of women.
Climacteric
It is the period during which various changes occur in the body of all women, usually the first symptoms occur at 42 years. The climacteric originates from the more or less accelerated decrease in the production of sex hormones, especially estrogen, becoming the main responsible for the most significant changes in the body of women, marking the term of reproductive function , which manifests with the cessation of menstruation.
Menopause
Menopause is the physiological cessation of menstrual function for at least 12 months, in the woman who previously menstruated, due to the drop in female hormone levels as a consequence of cessation of ovarian ovulatory function. This marks the end of the woman's reproductive phase.
Climacteric symptoms
- The hot flushes appear in the two years after menopause, but in the 25th % of women can persist up to 5 years or more. They are experienced as sudden and unexpected bursts of heat that most women locate in the arms, chest, face and neck. When they occur at night they can hinder sleep and cause fatigue since the beginning of the day and irritability.
- The osteoporosis affects a large number of women and causes increased bone fragility and is, in large part, measure, responsible for the numerous fractures that happen to women, especially the hip, spine and wrist.
- The atrophy and dryness of the vaginal mucosa with shortening and narrowing of said organ, can cause pain during intercourse (dyspareunia) and a marked decrease in sexual activity. However, numerous studies have shown that women who have enjoyed pleasurable sexuality before menopause and continued to maintain it throughout the climacteric achieve good vaginal lubrication, since the activity itself optimizes vaginal circulation.
Some symptoms that women perceive to be related in a wrong way to menopause
This is because no relationship has been shown with the decrease in estrogen. Among these are:
- Changes in mood with sleep disorders, irritability and anxiety, depressed feelings, changes in mood, etc. Actually, all this is more appropriate to relate to the events that the woman has to live in this moment of life. It reaches a fairly adult age, in which the family structure is usually modified with the departure of the last child of the household. In reality these symptoms would be more related to the feeling of the empty nest than with menopause.
- The loss of sexual interest. Its association with menopause is unjustified. There is no scientific reason to support the cause-effect relationship. In addition, numerous studies show that the factor that determines more weight the absence of sexual activity in older women is the lack of a partner, something that at this age begins to be frequent.
- The increased risk of disease cardiac and circulatory This is a controversial and controversial issue. However, the cause of these disorders is not attributable to estrogen deficiency. Yes it is to frequent diseases at this age such as diabetes, high blood pressure, increased cholesterol, or habits such as sedentary lifestyle, obesity, smoking and own aging.
Treatments
Changes in the habit of life
Adopt healthy measures regarding feeding and the practice of a physical exercise periodically and controlled.
Hormone replacement therapy (THR)
Prior to any initiation of hormone replacement therapy, every woman in this period should undergo a complete checkup that includes:
- Complete physical examination.
- Laboratory tests.
- Mammography.
- Ecotomography transvaginal.
- Bone densitometry
- ECG.
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