Time to the final menstrual period

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Title: Time to the final menstrual period
Author(s): Taffe, John; Dennerstein, Lorraine
Abstract: Objective: To determine, for a woman aged >45 years, whether selected hormonal, health status, and demographic measures are related to the time to final menstrual period (FMP) from a point where 6 weeks separate the shortest and longest cycles experienced to date. Design: Cohort study. Setting: Volunteers in an academic research environment. Patient(s): Ninety-nine menstruating women aged 46 years to 55 years on entry completed menstrual diaries, gave annual blood samples, and were interviewed annually. They were observed for a mean period of 1.5 years. Seventy-seven reached FMP during observation. Intervention(s): None. Main Outcome Measure(s): Time to reach FMP from the date of a marker event—the difference between the longest and shortest of recent cycles reaching 6 weeks. Result(s): Women self-rating as in the transition have a greater “hazard” or probability of FMP at any time after the marker event. Allowing for this and other covariates, the hazard is estimated to increase by 30% (confidence interval [CI]: 10%, 60%) for each year of age and 50% (CI: 7%, 118%) for each unit increase in log FSH, measured at the time of the marker event. Conclusion(s): For women aged >45 years, the time remaining in the menopausal transition from the day on which ≥6 weeks separate the longest and shortest recent cycles is related to self-rating of menopausal status and to serum FSH level. The median number of months remaining ranges from 11 for those with FSH of >20 IU/L and who see themselves as in transition to 21 months for those with lower FSH and who notice little evidence of being in transition.
Publication type: Journal article
Research centre: Swinburne University of Technology. School of Mathematical Sciences
Source: Fertility and Sterility, Vol. 78, no. 2 (Aug 2002), pp. 397-403
Publication year: 2002
Keyword(s): FMP; Menopause; Menstrual cycle; Perimenopause
Publisher: Elsevier
ISSN: 0015-0282
Publisher URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0015-0282(02)03231-4
Peer reviewed