NHMRC Investigator and Professor and Director of the Women's Health Research Program at Monash University (Australia)
Although menopause is a part of the lives of millions of women—accounting for about one-third of their lives in total—it remains one of the least-studied stages of women’s health. With up to 72 associated symptoms, there are still many unanswered questions about many of them and the impact of treatments. We spoke with experts to find out which questions remain unanswered.
The menopause should be tackled not just by treating specific symptoms, but more broadly, argue a group of researchers in an article published in The Lancet, one of a series on the subject. A medicalised approach can disempower women and lead to overtreatment, the authors warn. "Instead of focusing on menopause as an endocrine deficiency, we propose an empowerment model", they say. This model would incorporate the influence of psychological, social, and contextual factors that can be modified, and would also value the patient as the expert on her own condition.