Revista Brasileira de Saúde Materno Infantil (Dec 2009)

Caracterização da qualidade de vida segundo o estado menopausal entre mulheres da Região Sul do Brasil Characterization of the quality of life by menopausal status among women in the South region of Brazil

  • Dino Roberto Soares De Lorenzi,
  • Lenita Binelli Catan,
  • Tiago Cusin,
  • Roberto Felini,
  • Filipe Bassani,
  • Ana Claudia Arpini

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1590/S1519-38292009000400011
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 4
pp. 459 – 466

Abstract

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OBJETIVOS: caracterizar a qualidade de vida de mulheres climatéricas residentes na Região Sul segundo o estado menopausal delas. MÉTODOS: foram entrevistadas 236 mulheres com idades entre 40 e 65 anos, durante feira de saúde realizada em cidade do Sul do Brasil, em março de 2005. Na avaliação da qualidade de vida, utilizou-se a versão brasileira do instrumento Menopause Rating Scale. RESULTADOS: das entrevistadas, 133 eram pré-menopáusicas e 103 pós-menopáusicas. As primeiras referiram sintomas climatéricos moderados e severos em 37,6% e 24,0%, respectivamente, enquanto as mulheres pós-menopáusicas, relataram sintomas moderados e severos em 36,9% e 39,4% dos casos, respectivamente. Os escores globais de qualidade de vida não mostraram diferenças entre os grupos estudados (p=0,12), ainda que o grupo pré-menopáusico tenha referido mais sintomas psicológicos (p=0,05) e o pós-menopáusico mais sintomas somato-vegetativos (pOBJECTIVES: to characterize the quality of life of climacteric women residing in the South region by menopausal status. METHODS: two hundred and thirty-six women aged between 40 and 65 were interviewed during a health fair held in March 2005 in a city in the South of Brazil. Their quality of life was assessed using the Brazilian version of the Menopause Rating Scale. RESULTS: of those interviewed, 133 were pre-menopausal and 103 post-menopausal. Moderate and severe climacteric symptoms were reported by 37.6% and 24.0% of the former, respectively, while 36.9% and 39.4% of the post-menopausal women reported moderate and severe symptoms, respectively. There were no differences between the two groups studied in terms of overall scores on the quality of life scale (p=0.12), although the pre-menopausal group reported more psychological symptoms (p=0.05) and the post-menopausal group more somatic-vegetative (p<0.01) and urinogenital (p=0.01) symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: quality of life was not influenced by menopausal status among the women covered by this study. The greater severity of somatic-vegetative symptoms in the post-menopausal group is probably due to the greater likelihood of hypoestrogenism at this stage in life, which may lead to vasomotor symptoms and urinogenital atrophy. The greater severity of psychological symptoms among pre-menopausal women may be related to a higher level of concern regarding menopause and its possible health implications.

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