Symptom reporting around the menopause in Beirut, Lebanon.
OBJECTIVE
to assess the extent to which women in Beirut suffer from symptoms in the course of the menopause transition, and to measure the medical management of menopause.


METHODS
a survey was carried out on a representative sample of 298 women; the questionnaire collected information on respondents' sociodemographic characteristics, life circumstances, general health, and reproductive health; it also included a symptom checklist, questions on the management of menopausal symptoms, and lifestyle questions.


RESULTS
the article documents the frequencies of various symptoms associated with aging and menopause; the number of symptoms reported by respondents is negatively associated with employment, but other associations with sociodemographic variables are not significant; smoking is found to be high in the study population and is associated with the occurrence of hot flashes, but its association with other menopausal symptoms is not significant; over a third of the women seek help in dealing with the symptoms they experience, 15% use hormone replacement therapy, and 20% use calcium supplements.
Obermeyer
C M
CM
Department of Population and International Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Ghorayeb
F
F
Reynolds
R
R
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D020249:Hormone Replacement Therapy; D006801:Humans; D007861:Lebanon / Q000453:epidemiology; D008593:Menopause; D008875:Middle Aged; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires