Information Sources Consulted by Women in African Countries to Manage Menopausal Symptoms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Background: Despite an abundance of information regarding menopausal women in western society, African menopausal women have been overlooked in menopausal research, particularly, where they find information regarding menopause. Since inadequate health-related knowledge on menopause negatively affects the understanding of and coping with menopause and related symptoms, it is important to determine where women in Africa obtain their information about menopause. Aim: To conduct a systematic review to identify and analyse information sources consulted by menopausal women in the African region regarding the management of menopausal symptoms. Method: PubMed, Embase (OVID), Google Scholar, Medline (OVID), Medline in Process (OVID), Scopus, https://www.africabib.org/, African Index Medicus; http://indexmedicus.afro.who. int/,and African Journals Online (AJOL) were searched for publications from January 2000 to April 2017. Fourteen studies met the eligibility criteria. Twelve were quantitative while two were qualitative. Studies were independently appraised by two researchers using checklists from the Centre for Evidence-Based Management. Results: Meta-analysis explored the prevalence of different information sources reported with friends being the highest (44%, 95% CI: [0.35, 0.54]) followed by relatives (35%, 95% CI: [0.22, 0.50]) with medical providers being sources of information for only 30% of participants (95% CI: [0.15, 0.50]). Conclusion: Information regarding menopause among African women emanated primarily from friends and relatives, suggesting that women perceive menopause as a natural process whereby information is the best gleaned from informal sources. However, health care should aim to increase public awareness of menopause education and strengthen efforts to provide accurate, timely and helpful information for women and their friends and families.