Postmenopausal Health Maintenance Among Zagazig University Employees; Gap Between Reality and Expectation

Abstract

Background: Postmenopausal women experience many physical, psychological and social problems that affect their quality of life. Objective: to identify the most common postmenopausal symptoms, to assess the actions taken by women to maintain their postmenopausal health and to examine the barriers against maintaining postmenopausal health. Method: A cross sectional study was conducted from March to May 2023. Two hundred thirty-eight postmenopausal females were included in the study. Menopause rating scale and a structured questionnaire were used to identify the most common health problems, healthy actions, and barriers against adopting them. Results: The most common health disorders reported by the examined women were joint and muscular discomfort (97.1%), followed by physical and mental exhaustion (95%) and sleep problems (93.7%). The severity of symptoms ranged between severe to very severe in more than half of the sample. The main actions taken to maintain a healthy postmenopausal life were measuring blood pressure (78.2%), followed by diabetes mellitus follow up (77.7%) and measuring lipid profile (75.6%). Regular influenza vaccination was received by 33% of participants. Cancer screening was done by approximately one third of the participants, mainly breast cancer screening. The main barriers reported were low income (71%), unavailability of health services (67.6%) and lack of knowledge (67.2%). Conclusions: Most postmenopausal women complain of joint and muscle pain, physical and mental exhaustion and sleep problems. Most of the recommended preventive practices were not followed. There is a need for increasing women awareness and providing accessible services.