Measuring climacteric symptoms and age at natural menopause in an Indian population using the Greene Climacteric Scale

Objective: The aim of the present study was to establish the age at onset of natural menopause and the prevalence of symptoms and identify any sociodemographic, physical, or other factors that may influence the onset of menopause among women in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, a state located in northern India. Methods: Women in the age group of 30 to 65 years were interviewed using a questionnaire that has a four-point scale. Participants (N = 129) were divided into three categories: premenopause, early postmenopause (1-5 years after last menstrual cycle), and late postmenopause (>5 years after last menstrual cycle). The Greene Climacteric Scale was used to assess the frequency and severity of the climacteric symptoms. Results: Recalled mean +/- SD age at menopause was 45.02 +/- 4.35 years, and age at menopause computed by probit analysis was 46.82 years. An increase in the percentage of occurrence and severity of symptoms with transition to menopause was observed. The most prevalent symptom was muscle and joint pains (55.81%), followed by feeling tired or lack of energy (51.19%), eye problems (49.61%), headache (43.41%), and feeling unhappy or depressed (36.43%). Women who belonged to middle class families had a late onset of menopause (45.47 years) compared with women of poor socioeconomic status (42.13 years) (P < 0.05). Women who had active or hectic lifestyles achieved menopause at an earlier age in comparison with women with a sedentary lifestyle. Conclusions: This is the first attempt to report the data on menopause from Uttarakhand, a state located in northern India. Computed age at the onset of menopause varied by approximately 2 years with different methodologies used. Socioeconomic status and lifestyles significantly affect the age at the onset of menopause. Most of the women rated menopause as a positive change in life.