Effects of counseling on climacteric symptoms in Japanese postmenopausal women

OBJECTIVES: We objectively assessed the effects of counseling on climacteric symptoms in Japanese postmenopausal women. METHODS: Symptoms in 44 women (age, 51.4 +/- 3.4 years; period after menopause, 3.6 +/- 3.4 years) treated with counseling were evaluated according to the Keio modified menopause index. The response to counseling was compared with that to hormone replacement therapy (HRT). RESULTS: Forty cases (90.9%) showed an improvement in index score. There were no significant relationships between improvement and age, the period after menopause, or the severity or type of symptoms before counseling. The most improved symptom was headache, followed by palpitation and insomnia. Physical symptoms accounted for most of the common symptoms. The pattern of improvement with counseling was markedly different from that with HRT. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that counseling is effective for treating climacteric symptoms, since it improves not only psychological symptoms, but also physical ones. Counseling may deserve evaluation as a complementary treatment to HRT.