Few oligo-amenorrheic athletes have vasomotor symptoms.
OBJECTIVE
To assess whether women with athletic oligo-amenorrhea have vasomotor symptoms.


METHODS
A mailed questionnaire was sent to 252 female athletes about vasomotor symptoms. Identical questions were also mailed to 1523 peri- and postmenopausal women.


RESULTS
The prevalence of vasomotor symptoms was low in female athletes with oligo- and amenorrhea and similar to that found in athletes with regular menstruations. The prevalence was significantly lower than in menopausal women. Although more than a third of the menopausal women had hormone replacement therapy, 30% of them still had vasomotor symptoms at least every week compared with only 2% of the oligo-amenorrheic athletes.


CONCLUSIONS
Vasomotor symptoms are very uncommon in oligo-amenorrheic athletes, although many of them are hypoestrogenic. It was suggested that one factor contributing to these symptoms around menopause is low hypothalamic activity of beta-endorphins, which makes the thermoregulatory centre labile. On the other hand, supraphysiological activity in hypothalamic beta-endorphins may cause the oligo-amenorrhea in athletes, but may stabilise the thermoregulatory centre and thus prevent hot flushes.
Hammar
M L
ML
Division of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Department of Health and Environment, Faculty of Health Sciences, Link]oping University, Link]oping, Sweden. matha@gyn.liu.se
Hammar-Henriksson
M B
MB
Frisk
J
J
Rickenlund
A
A
Wyon
Y A
YA
D000328:Adult; D000568:Amenorrhea / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D019584:Hot Flashes / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008593:Menopause; D008875:Middle Aged; D017697:Premenopause; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology