Mid-life women's knowledge about perimenopause in Vojvodina

Abstract

Introduction: Knowledge on changes manifested during perimenopausal period are health issues of paramount importance for all women worldwide, and providing adequate information is one of the key tasks for health professionals. Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the level of perimenopausal knowledge in women in relation to their sociodemographic characteristics and menopausal status, to analyze the information source and to draft and offer to women an education program about perimenopause. Material and methods: The research was designed as a cross-sectional study, and the poll was carried out among 180 women from the cities of Sombor and Novi Sad. As a research instrument a specially designed questionnaire was applied, containing 23 statements on perimenopause, sociodemographic and health status data, as well as data on perimenopause information source. The statements were grouped into the four domains. The participants could designate the statements as "true", "false"or "I don't know". Statistical evaluation of the obtained results was performed using SPSS Statistics base 14.0 for Windows software. Values p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The participants were most informed on statements of a subscale "The terms menopause and perimenopause"(90.3%) and the least informed (47%) on statements of the sub-scale "Hormone replacement therapy during perimenopause". Statistically significant difference concerning information level in women was established only in relation to the education level and pertaining to statements of the subscale "Prevention measures during perimenopause"(p=0.002). Conclusion: This study emphasized the "weak spots"of the perimenopausal knowledge of women, which are: hormone replacement therapy, physiological changes, health risks and prevention measures during perimenopause.