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Nearly 40 % of perimenopausal girls in a Monash College-led research had untreated and doubtlessly debilitating vasomotor signs (VMS) equivalent to sizzling flushes, night time sweats.
Printed in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, the research, believed to be the primary of its type, explored intimately the similarities and variations between girls throughout every of the levels of menopause, figuring out the signs which finest differentiate menopause onset.
Senior creator Professor Susan Davis AO, who heads the Monash College Girls’s Well being Analysis Program within the College of Public Well being and Preventive Drugs, mentioned this research reveals reasonable to extreme VMS and reasonable to extreme vaginal dryness to be essentially the most defining symptom of perimenopause, being 5 and a couple of.5 occasions extra prevalent, in contrast with premenopause.
The research concerned 5509 girls aged 40-69 years recruited between 2023-2024. Of the 5509 girls concerned within the research, 1250 had been categorized as premenopausal, 344 had been early perimenopausal, 271 had been late perimenopausal, and 3644 girls had been categorized as postmenopausal.
“We already knew that VMS symptoms like hot flushes and night sweats are typical menopausal symptoms; however, our study clearly shows that a new onset of VMS is highly specific to perimenopause, being nearly five times more likely than in premenopause,” Professor Davis mentioned.
“Much less variation was discovered for different signs together with poor reminiscence and low temper; nevertheless, vaginal dryness was essentially the most discriminative sexual symptom from premenopause to perimenopause.
“Whereas different signs would possibly emerge within the perimenopausal stage, they lack specificity to that stage as these different signs are additionally widespread in premenopausal girls, e.g; poor reminiscence was only one.7 and 1.3 occasions extra probably in early and late perimenopause in contrast with premenopause.
“These findings counsel that traditional VMS needs to be thought-about as a diagnostic criterion for perimenopause or postmenopause when menopause cannot be distinguished by the bleeding sample, for instance, after a hysterectomy or endometrial ablation, or, for girls with a hormonal IUD.
“A serious discovering was that girls with common cycles, however with modified menstrual move and VMS, who’re presently categorized as premenopausal, had an identical severity of a variety of signs as early perimenopausal girls who, by definition, have cycles that change into shorter or longer by not less than per week.
“This finding supports the likelihood of perimenopause commencing before menstrual cycles vary by at least a week, and that women whose periods have become much heavier or much lighter and who also have VMS should be considered as having entered their perimenopause.”
First creator Dr. Rakib Islam, from Monash College’s College of Public Well being and Preventive Drugs mentioned, “this study stands out for its national reach and methodological depth, linking clearly defined menopausal stages with validated symptom profiles in over 5,500 women. This level of detail is essential to improve how we identify and manage the menopause transition.”
“Current approaches for classifying women by menopause stage overlook women with regular cycles and women who no longer menstruate, e.g. after a hysterectomy. Our findings support a more symptom-based approach, enabling earlier recognition of perimenopause and more timely care,” Dr. Islam mentioned.
Professor The Hon Jill Hennessy, Chair, Monash Girls’s Well being Alliance mentioned the analysis would assist remodel girls’s well being remedy. “This landmark study reinforces just how critical it is to listen to women and take their symptoms seriously,” Professor Hennessy mentioned. “Too many go untreated for debilitating signs like sizzling flushes and night time sweats. Analysis like that is important to make sure girls get the well timed, evidence-based care they deserve throughout perimenopause.
“Menopause is a major women’s health issue that has been overlooked for too long. By defining the symptoms that truly mark this transition, this study empowers women and clinicians alike with better knowledge and tools to improve women’s health and well-being.”
Extra info:
Rakibul M Islam et al, Prevalence and severity of signs throughout the menopause transition: cross-sectional findings from the Australian Girls’s Midlife Years (AMY) Examine, The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology (2025). DOI: 10.1016/S2213-8587(25)00138-X
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First of its type research explores symptom prevalence throughout the menopause transition (2025, July 26)
retrieved 26 July 2025
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