Experience and severity of menopause symptoms and effects on health-seeking behaviours: a cross-sectional online survey of community dwelling adults in the United Kingdom

作者：David Huang, Abigail Goodship, Iman Webber, Aos Alaa, Eva Riboli–Sasco, Benedict Hayhoe, Austen El‐Osta · 发表于：BMC Women s Health · 年份：2023 · DOI：10.1186/s12905-023-02506-w · 被引用次数：64 · 研究领域：Menopause: Health Impacts and Treatments、Sexual function and dysfunction studies、Phytoestrogen effects and research

BACKGROUND: Almost all women will experience menopause, and the symptoms can have a severely detrimental impact on their quality of life. However, there is limited research exploring health-seeking behaviours and alternative service design or consultation formats. Group consultations have been successfully deployed in perinatal and diabetic care, improving accessibility and outcomes. This cross-sectional online survey was conducted to explore women's personal experiences of menopause, including perspectives on group consultations. METHODS: An online survey investigated the experiences of individuals at all stages of menopause and their receptiveness towards group consultations for menopause. Respondents were categorised by menopause stage according to the STRAW + 10 staging system. Associations between menopause stage, acceptability of group consultations and participant demographics were assessed using logistic regression. RESULTS: Respondents experienced an average of 10.7 menopausal symptoms, but only 47% of respondents felt they had the knowledge and tools to manage their symptoms. Advice on menopause was sought from a healthcare professional (HCP) by 61% of respondents, the largest trigger for this being severity of symptoms and the main barrier for this was the perception that menopause wasn't a valid enough reason to seek help. Of the respondents seeking advice from HCPs, 32% were prescribed transdermal HRT, 29% received oral HRT, 19% were offered antidepressants, 18% ...