Menopausal symptoms and related factors among women in Baghdad City

Introduction: Menopause is a unique event in a woman’s life that associated with various somatic, psychological, vasomotor and sexual symptoms that affect the overall quality of life of women. Objectives: The present study was aimed to determine the effect of socio-demographic, reproductive and lifestyle factors on the experience of menopausal symptoms among women in Baghdad City. Patients and methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. This survey is conducted in September 2015 to April 2016 among 195 women who are living in different parts of the city of Baghdad. All those ladies had undergone natural menopause. The data was analyzed by using SPSS program version 22. Results: The mean age of natural menopause was 49.3±2.3. The most frequent menopausal symptoms were aching in muscles and joints 72.3%; hot flushes 70.3%; vaginal dryness 67.3%; and feeling bloated were reported by 65.1% of study subjects. There was a significant association between the menopausal symptoms and socio-demographic, reproductive and lifestyle factors among the study subjects. Conclusion: Menopausal symptoms are multi factorial; therefore exact determination of these symptoms in our society is essential as it can help to identify preventable factors and to educate women about their quality of life.