Menopausal symptoms in a hospital-based sample of women in southern Thailand.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate menopausal symptoms and quality of life in middle-aged women. STUDY DESIGN: Hospital-based, cross-sectional study. METHODS: A survey was conducted among 270 women aged 45-65 years who attended the gynecological and menopause clinic, Songklanagarind Hospital. We used the MENQOL questionnaire as the instrument. RESULTS: The average age at menopause of the postmenopausal women was 48.7 years (range 40-57 years). The prevalences of the classical menopausal symptoms--hot flushes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness--in the women aged 45-65 years were 36.8%, 20.8 and 55.3%, respectively. The three most prevalent symptoms in perimenopause were aching in muscles and joints, experiencing poor memory, and change in sexual desire. Within the four domains (vasomotor, psychological, physical, and sexual symptoms), more suffering was reported in the perimenopausal and postmenopausal subjects than in the premenopausal subjects (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Peri- and postmenopausal women had a significant decrease in quality of life compared to premenopausal women.