Thi Minh Chau Tran, Yun Soo Chung, Jin Kyung Baek, Hae-Rim Kim, Bo Hyon Yun, Heeyon Kim, Seok Kyo Seo
{"title":"Parity and low hand grip strength in postmenopausal women: data from KNHANES (2014-2019).","authors":"Thi Minh Chau Tran, Yun Soo Chung, Jin Kyung Baek, Hae-Rim Kim, Bo Hyon Yun, Heeyon Kim, Seok Kyo Seo","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002576","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002576","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Low hand grip strength, with or without reduced physical performance, has been defined previously as possible sarcopenia. Identifying credential parameters of sarcopenia is crucial given its high prevalence among postmenopausal women. Since hand grip strength is a key parameter in diagnosis of sarcopenia and parity affects estrogen exposure, this study aims to examine the association between parity and hand grip strength (HGS).</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), from 2014 to 2019, were analyzed and included 4,102 postmenopausal women aged 45-65 years. Participants were categorized into two groups: hand grip strength <18 kg and hand grip strength ≥18 kg. Parity was determined through the collection of standardized questionnaires regarding information on the total number of pregnancies carried to a viable gestational age and subsequently, categorized into four groups: parity 0, parity 1, parity 2, and parity greater than three. The association between parity and hand grip strength was assessed utilizing logistic regression analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among participants, 17.8% had HGS <18 kg, indicating possible sarcopenia. Mean HGS was 20.33 kg for nulliparous women, 21.65 kg for primiparous women, and 21.76 kg for those whose parity was two, and 21.88 kg for those whose parity was three or more ( P <0.01). Compared with nulliparity, the odds of low HGS decreased by 49% in multiparity after adjusting for height, weight, age, menopause age, high alcohol intake, dyslipidemia, and diabetes mellitus (OR: 0.51, P <0.01).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The results of this study found that higher parity is significantly associated with increased hand grip strength, which may reduce the likelihood of possible sarcopenia.</p>","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":"940-946"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144317333","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The change isn't the end: self-love and menopause.","authors":"Erika L Kelley","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002671","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002671","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":"899-900"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144960348","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Stany Rodrigues Campos de Paula, Maria Celia Mendes, Sergio Henrique Pires Okano, Rui Alberto Ferriani, Rosana Maria Reis, Lucia Alves da Silva Lara
{"title":"The use of vaginal estriol and its effects on sexual intercourse and serum estriol levels in postmenopausal women.","authors":"Stany Rodrigues Campos de Paula, Maria Celia Mendes, Sergio Henrique Pires Okano, Rui Alberto Ferriani, Rosana Maria Reis, Lucia Alves da Silva Lara","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002589","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002589","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Vaginal estrogenization plays a crucial role in alleviating pain during sexual activity while low-dose vaginal estrogen therapy provides benefit often with no increase in systemic estrogen levels after use. This study aimed to compare the effects of estriol applied to the distal or proximal thirds of the vagina on dyspareunia in postmenopausal women, evaluate serum estriol levels, and assess sexual function.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This prospective, randomized clinical trial included a total of 116 sexually active postmenopausal women with dyspareunia who were randomized to receive vaginal estriol (1.0 mg/application, every other day) for 12 weeks in the proximal estriol group (PEG) or distal estriol group (DEG), or a vaginal lubricant gel (VLG) before intercourse. Plasma estriol levels, coital pain (McGill Pain Questionnaire), sexual function (FSFI), and emotional status (HADS) were assessed at baseline and after 12 weeks. Statistical analyses included the Shapiro-Wilk test for normality, one-way ANOVA with Tukey's post-hoc test, χ 2 test, and Pearson correlation as appropriate.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>No significant changes in serum estriol levels were observed in any group after the intervention. PEG and DEG showed significant increases in FSFI total scores and all domains. The VLG group showed improvements in FSFI total scores and the domains of desire, arousal, lubrication, satisfaction, and pain. Intergroup analysis revealed that the PEG group showed significantly greater improvement in the lubrication domain compared with DEG (mean difference=0.70; 95% CI: 0.05-1.37; P =0.04) and VLG (mean difference=1.22; 95% CI: 0.58-1.86; P <0.01). All other domains showed no statistically significant differences between groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Vaginal estriol, applied distally or proximally, improved dyspareunia and sexual function without increasing systemic estriol levels. Lubricant use also enhanced sexual function (except orgasm) and reduced pain comparably to estriol.</p>","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":"947-955"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144540771","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cynthia A Graham, Louise Ferrall, Justin J Lehmiller
{"title":"Masturbation frequency and experiences among US women aged 40-65 years: comparisons across different stages of the menopause transition.","authors":"Cynthia A Graham, Louise Ferrall, Justin J Lehmiller","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002597","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002597","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>The aims of the study were to assess the reported frequency of, and reasons for, masturbation and experiences of orgasm and sex toy use during masturbation and to compare these experiences across women at different stages of the menopause transition.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A nationally representative US sample of 1,500 women aged 40-65 (M age: 52.5 y) completed an online survey asking about their experiences during masturbation. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, χ 2 tests, and ANOVAs.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Over half (55.8%) of the sample described themselves as postmenopausal, 22.7% as perimenopausal, and 21.5% as premenopausal. There were significant differences in the frequency of masturbation, with postmenopausal women reporting a lower frequency compared with the other 2 groups ( P < 0.014). Postmenopausal women also rated the importance of masturbation in their lives as lower compared with perimenopausal and premenopausal women ( P < 0.001). There were no group differences in the frequency of orgasm during masturbation, with women reporting orgasm an average of 81% of the times that they masturbated. Overall, more women reported that the quality of their orgasms had gotten better than worse over the last 10 years, and most noticed no change. More women reported that orgasm had become more difficult to attain, but about half had noticed no change. There were no significant group differences in the percentage of times that sex toys were used during masturbation (44.4% for the total sample).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Sexual pleasure and orgasm remain important for many older women and menopause is not always associated with adverse changes in sexuality, including the ability to orgasm during masturbation.</p>","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":"903-912"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12502948/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144591623","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Klara Beitl, Katalin Widmann, Rodrig Marculescu, Robert Krysiak, Johannes Ott
{"title":"Transdermal versus oral hormone therapy in premature ovarian insufficiency.","authors":"Klara Beitl, Katalin Widmann, Rodrig Marculescu, Robert Krysiak, Johannes Ott","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002588","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002588","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Hormone therapy is recommended in women with premature ovarian insufficiency to mitigate long-term risks associated with estrogen deficiency, such as loss of bone mineral density. However, data on the optimal route of administration are scarce. This study aimed to compare the effect of transdermal and oral hormone therapies on the T-scores of the femur and the hip in women with premature ovarian insufficiency.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This retrospective, single-center cohort study included 55 women with spontaneous premature ovarian insufficiency who were regularly monitored at the Clinical Division of Gynecological Endocrinology and Reproductive Medicine of the Medical University of Vienna. For hormone therapy, participants received either oral or transdermal estrogen therapy. The main outcome parameters were the T-scores of the femur and hip assessed by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among the 55 women included [median age: 34 y, interquartile range (IQR): 27-36], 65.5% showed reduced bone mineral density in the dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scan results (osteopenia: n= 27, 49.1%; osteoporosis: n= 9, 16.4%). Participants were treated with transdermal and oral estradiol in 27 (49.1%) and 28 cases (50.9%), respectively. There were no significant differences in the T-scores of the femur and the hip, neither at baseline ( P =0.586, P =0.400) nor at follow-up assessment ( P =0.618, P =0.471) between the two treatment groups.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Both oral and transdermal hormone therapies effectively help maintain bone mineral density in women with premature ovarian insufficiency, indicating that either option is a suitable treatment choice for this population.</p>","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":"913-919"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144591625","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Prioritizing and optimizing bone health in premature ovarian insufficiency.","authors":"Raja A Sayegh","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002652","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002652","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":"901-902"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144960375","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Anne Armstrong, Rebecca Bowen, Paula Briggs, Carlo Palmieri, Annice Mukherjee, Kathryn Williams
{"title":"To the editor.","authors":"Anne Armstrong, Rebecca Bowen, Paula Briggs, Carlo Palmieri, Annice Mukherjee, Kathryn Williams","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002669","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002669","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":"32 10","pages":"983-984"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145199806","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Role of progestogens in hormone therapy.","authors":"James H Liu","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002649","DOIUrl":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002649","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":"32 10","pages":"975-977"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145199828","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sarah Glynne, James Simon, Anthony Branson, Stephen Payne, Louise Newson, Isaac Manyonda, Susan Cleator, Michael Douek, Sasha Usiskin, Jeffrey S Tobias, Jayant S Vaidya
{"title":"Menopausal hormone therapy for breast cancer patients: what is the current evidence?","authors":"Sarah Glynne, James Simon, Anthony Branson, Stephen Payne, Louise Newson, Isaac Manyonda, Susan Cleator, Michael Douek, Sasha Usiskin, Jeffrey S Tobias, Jayant S Vaidya","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002627","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/GME.0000000000002627","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Importance and objectives: </strong>Many breast cancer survivors struggle with menopausal symptoms due to oncological treatment-induced hormone deficiency, or because they experience menopause some years after completing treatment, but have limited menopause treatment options. Estrogen replacement therapy is the most effective treatment for menopausal symptoms, but is not recommended after breast cancer because it can increase the risk of relapse. Our objectives were to review the evidence and develop a consensus statement to define the role of menopausal hormone therapy after breast cancer, and to highlight evidence gaps to inform future research.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A 25-member multidisciplinary panel developed the consensus statements using a modified Delphi methodology. The panel consisted of 18 senior doctors who voted (5 GP menopause specialists, 5 gynecologists, 4 medical oncologists, 3 breast surgical oncologists, and 1 breast radiologist), and 7 members who did not vote (4 patient representatives, 1 medical oncologist, 1 urologist and 1 administrator). Consensus was defined as ≥70% agreement with low-to-moderate variation in extent of agreement (mean absolute deviation from median of ≤0.75). We reviewed current evidence relating to use of vaginal and systemic menopausal hormone therapy (\"MHT\", also known as \"hormone therapy,\" \"HT\" or \"hormone replacement therapy,\" \"HRT\") after breast cancer diagnosis, and adjuvant endocrine (anti-estrogen) therapy, and developed a narrative synthesis. Finally, four additional breast cancer specialists peer-reviewed the manuscript.</p><p><strong>Discussion and conclusions: </strong>The panel agreed that some women may choose to take MHT, (off-label use) and accept an increased risk of relapse in exchange for relief from menopausal symptoms and an improved quality of life, and that preferences may vary according to individual circumstances and the absolute risk of relapse. All respondents agreed or strongly agreed with statements supporting shared decision making and individualized menopause care (MADM 0.29).In our review of the literature, we found mainly moderate quality evidence concerning use of vaginal and systemic estrogen after breast cancer, and high quality evidence concerning the benefits of anti-estrogen therapy for estrogen receptor positive breast cancer. Based on the available data, we recommend that shared decisions are based on (1) an individual's menopausal symptoms and impact on quality of life, (2) the potential increase in an individual's risk of relapse by use of menopausal hormone therapy, and (3) patient preferences, views and treatment goals. Clinicians and patients can use our findings to make informed menopause treatment choices after breast cancer. We strongly recommend registering all patients considering MHT after breast cancer in a clinical study (eg, MENopausal hormone therapy and Outcomes After Breast Cancer, the MENO-ABC trial).</p>","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145192001","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"To the Editor.","authors":"Rüyam Ercenk, İbrahim Karaca","doi":"10.1097/GME.0000000000002673","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1097/GME.0000000000002673","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18435,"journal":{"name":"Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145191981","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}