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Bio Protoc 2021 Apr 20;11(8):e3994. Epub 2021 Apr 20.

Department of Basic and Oral Science, School of Dentistry of Ribeirao Preto, University of Sao Paulo, Ribeirao Preto, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Women are born with an abundant but finite pool of ovarian follicles, which naturally and progressively decreased during their reproductive years until menstrual periods stop permanently (menopause). Perimenopause represents the transition from reproductive to non-reproductive life. It is usually characterized by neuroendocrine, metabolic and behavioral changes, which result from a follicular depletion and reduced number of ovarian follicles. Read More

Front Pharmacol 2021 20;12:644103. Epub 2021 May 20.

Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad San Sebastian, Concepcion, Chile.

In mammals, sexual hormones such as estrogens play an essential role in maintaining brain homeostasis and function. Estrogen deficit in the brain induces many undesirable symptoms such as learning and memory impairment, sleep and mood disorders, hot flushes, and fatigue. These symptoms are frequent in women who reached menopausal age or have had ovariectomy and in men and women subjected to anti-estrogen therapy. Read More

Int J Clin Pract 2021 Apr 22:e14247. Epub 2021 Apr 22.

Department of Family Medicine, Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.

Aims: The symptoms of menopause in postmenopausal women adversely affect the quality of life. Menopausal symptoms are more severe with comorbid disorders such as depression; it may be lighter in physically active people. The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between menopausal symptoms and physical activity and depressive mood. Read More

Psychol Med 2021 Apr 14:1-10. Epub 2021 Apr 14.

Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.

Background: Most epidemiological studies show a decrease of internalizing disorders at older ages, but it is unclear how the prevalence exactly changes with age, and whether there are different patterns for internalizing symptoms and traits, and for men and women. This study investigates the impact of age and sex on the point prevalence across different mood and anxiety disorders, internalizing symptoms, and neuroticism.

Methods: We used cross-sectional data on 146 315 subjects, aged 18-80 years, from the Lifelines Cohort Study, a Dutch general population sample. Read More

J Mol Med (Berl) 2021 May 27;99(5):637-650. Epub 2021 Feb 27.

The Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota, 801 16th Ave NE, Austin, MN, 55912, USA.

Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) is defined as a reduction in ovarian function before the expected age of menopause. POI is known to increase the risk of cardiovascular disorders, osteoporosis, cognitive decline, and mood disorders, resulting in a reduced quality of life. Appropriate hormone replacement for premenopausal women decreases these adverse health risks and improves quality of life for women with POI, but does not prolong life expectancy. Read More

Front Med (Lausanne) 2020 18;7:479646. Epub 2021 Jan 18.

Center for Psychosocial Medicine, Institute of Medical Psychology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.

Women worldwide are two to three times more likely to suffer from depression in their lifetime than are men. Female risk for depressive symptoms is particularly high during the reproductive years between menarche and menopause. The term "Reproductive Mood Disorders" refers to depressive disorders triggered by hormonal fluctuations during reproductive transitions including the perimenarchal phase, the pre-menstrual phase, pregnancy, the peripartum period and the perimenopausal transition. Read More

Mol Cell Endocrinol 2021 04 30;525:111181. Epub 2021 Jan 30.

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, 1400 S. Coulter Rd, Amarillo, TX, 79106, USA.

Premenopausal breast cancer is usually estrogen receptor positive, and hence, prolonged ovarian suppression by medical or surgical means to prevent recurrence has become standard of management to improve disease-free survival. Ten-year adjuvant tamoxifen therapy is associated with 3.5% fewer recurrences compared to five years. Read More

J Pak Med Assoc 2020 Dec;70(12(B)):2481-2483

Department of Endocrinology, Gangaram Bansal Hospital,Sri Ganganagar.

We propose the use of the term 'menopause distress,' and share a conceptual definition. Menopause distress is defined as an emotional response characterised by significant, persistent apprehension, discomfort or dejection, due to a perceived inability to cope with the biomedical and psychosocial demands and challenges of living with menopause. This review discusses menopause distress, its definition, etiology, clinical features, and management. Read More

Sci Rep 2021 01 8;11(1):44. Epub 2021 Jan 8.

Disciplina de Fisiologia da Nutrição, Departamento de Fisiologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua Botucatu, 862, Edifício de Ciências Biomédicas, 2º andar, Vila Clementino, São Paulo, SP, CEP: 04023-062, Brasil.

While several pieces of evidence link obesity and mood disorders in menopause, the mechanisms involved are not yet fully understood. We have previously demonstrated that Ginkgo biloba extract (GbE) both attenuated diet-induced obesity of male rats and restored serotonin-induced hypophagia in ovariectomized female rats. The present study aimed at exploring whether GbE treatment ameliorates ovariectomy-related obesity and anxious/depressive-like behaviours. Read More

PLoS One 2020 31;15(12):e0244728. Epub 2020 Dec 31.

Dept. of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Indiana University Bloomington, Bloomington, Indiana, United States of America.

Background: There are no epidemiologic data on the relation of depression before colorectal cancer diagnosis to colorectal cancer mortality among women with colorectal cancer, especially those who are postmenopausal. Our aim was to fill this research gap.

Methods: We analyzed data from a large prospective cohort in the US, the Women's Health Initiative (WHI). Read More

Brain Sci 2020 Dec 28;11(1). Epub 2020 Dec 28.

Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin, 48 Żołnierska St., 71-210 Szczecin, Poland.

Menopause is an important event in a woman's life associated with hormonal changes that play a substantial role in the functioning of her body. A decline in the level of estrogens contributes to depressive symptoms and mood disorders during this period. The severity of depressive symptoms experienced by middle-aged women depends on many factors, including sociodemographic data (e. Read More

Front Psychiatry 2020 29;11:579995. Epub 2020 Oct 29.

Li Ka Shing (LKS) Faculty of Medicine, School of Chinese Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.

Jie-Yu Pill (JYP) is a proprietary herbal medicine initially developed to treat menstrual mood disorders. This study sought to determine whether JYP could alleviate menopausal psychiatric symptoms in ovariectomized (OVX) mice, an animal model of estrogen deprivation, exposed to chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) and the underlying mechanisms in comparison with estrogen therapy. The OVX+CUMS mice were treated with 0. Read More

Maturitas 2021 Jan 22;143:145-150. Epub 2020 Oct 22.

ESRC Centre for Population Change, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK; Centre for Research on Ageing, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK.

Objectives: To examine Chinese middle-aged women's health and wellbeing and the associated biosocial correlates.

Study Design: This study used a cross-sectional design, including selected retrospectively collected information on the final menstrual period, drawn from the 2013 wave of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Women aged 45 to 59 were selected. Read More

Gynecol Endocrinol 2021 Mar 2;37(3):195-200. Epub 2020 Dec 2.

Department of Molecular and Developmental Medicine, Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Siena, Siena, Italy.

Perimenopause represents a transition period of a woman's life during which physiological, affective, psychological, and social changes mark progression from a woman's fertile life to menopause, with wide sexual hormones fluctuations until the onset of hypergonadotropic hypogonadic amenorrhea. Contraception during menopause should not only avoid unwanted pregnancies, but also improve quality of life and prevent wide range of condition affecting this population. Hormonal contraceptives confer many noncontraceptive benefits for women approaching menopause: treatment of abnormal uterine bleeding, relief from vasomotor symptoms, endometrial protection in women using estrogen therapy, musculoskeletal protection, and mood disorders protection. Read More

Clin Interv Aging 2020 16;15:2195-2208. Epub 2020 Nov 16.

Department of Gynecological Endocrinology, Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100026, People's Republic of China.

Objective: To investigate the dependency of menopausal symptoms on age and/or menopausal status and association with social and environmental factors.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted on 4595 women (40-83 years) coming from 31 provinces during two years to our "Menopause Clinic", the first official center in China. Menopausal symptoms were assessed: negative mood, cognitive symptoms, sleep disorder, vasomotor symptoms (VMS), urogenital symptoms, autonomic nervous disorder, limb pain/paresthesia. Read More

Clin Obstet Gynecol 2020 12;63(4):720-734

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York.

Perimenopause often represents a physiologically challenging phase in women's lives. The clinical presentation of the perimenopause includes infertility, irregular menstrual cycles, menorrhagia, and new onset of or worsening of mood disorders. Unlike menopause, which is characterized by low levels of estradiol and progesterone, the hallmark of perimenopause is highly variable levels of estradiol and progesterone with abrupt increases and decreases that are often described as a hormonal roller coaster. Read More

Am J Psychiatry 2020 10;177(10):891-894

Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston; Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston.

Am Fam Physician 2020 10;102(7):427-433

Abrazo Family Medicine Residency, Phoenix, AZ, USA.

Night sweats are a nonspecific symptom that patients commonly experience but rarely discuss with their physicians without prompting. Although many life-threatening causes such as malignancies or infections have been described, most patients who report persistent night sweats in the primary care setting do not have a serious underlying disorder. Conditions commonly associated with night sweats include menopause, mood disorders, gastroesophageal reflux disease, hyperthyroidism, and obesity. Read More

J Psychiatr Res 2021 04 8;136:444-451. Epub 2020 Aug 8.

Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, Poul Hansen Family Centre for Depression, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Canadian Rapid Treatment Center of Excellence, Mississauga, ON, Canada; Brain and Cognition Discovery Foundation, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.

Women are disproportionately represented amongst samples of adults with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Ketamine has demonstrated rapid and robust efficacy in adults with TRD. Herein, we sought to determine whether the effectiveness of intravenous (IV) ketamine was influenced by menopausal status in women with TRD. Read More

Menopause 2020 09 4;28(2):207-216. Epub 2020 Sep 4.

Taoyuan Psychiatric Center, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taoyuan City, Taiwan.

Importance: Although previous meta-analyses mainly focused on the effects of hormonal treatment against menopausal sleep disturbances, the therapeutic role of antidepressants has not been systematically addressed.

Objective: To study the therapeutic benefit and safety of antidepressants in menopausal sleep disturbances.

Evidence Review: Randomized controlled trials assessing the therapeutic effects of antidepressants against menopausal sleep problems were identified from the PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Science Direct databases from inception to March 1, 2020. Read More

Climacteric 2020 12 3;23(6):539-549. Epub 2020 Sep 3.

Research Center for Reproductive Medicine, Gynecological Endocrinology and Menopause, Obstetrics and Gynecology Unit, IRCCS S. Matteo Foundation, Department of Clinical, Surgical, Diagnostic and Paediatric Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.

The menopausal transition is associated with an increased frequency of sleep disturbances. Insomnia represents one of the most reported symptoms by menopausal women. According to its pathogenetic model (3-P Model), different predisposing factors (i. Read More

Front Psychiatry 2020 15;11:693. Epub 2020 Jul 15.

Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Hadassah-Hebrew-University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.

The involvement of gonadal hormones in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia has long been suspected because the psychosis differs in women and men and the illness first makes its appearance shortly after puberty. Changes in sex hormones have been linked with increased vulnerability to mood disorders in women, while testosterone have been associated with increased sexual drive and aggressiveness in men as well as women. Some studies have found abnormal levels of estrogens and testosterone in schizophrenia patients, but the results have been inconsistent and sometimes attributed to the hyperprolactinemia effect of antipsychotics, which may interfere with sex hormones production. Read More

Maturitas 2020 Sep 26;139:12-19. Epub 2020 May 26.

Hacettepe University School of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Ankara, Turkey. Electronic address:

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder with heterogenous clinical manifestations. The evidence indicates that PCOS is associated with long-term health risks including type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, obstructive sleep apnea, endometrial cancer, and mood disorders. Although cardiometabolic risk factors are more common among women with PCOS, currently there is no strong evidence for increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in these patients. Read More

Clin Exp Hypertens 2021 Jan 27;43(1):1-6. Epub 2020 Jul 27.

Department of Evidence-Based Medicine, Xuan Wu Hospital, Capital Medical University , Beijing, Xicheng, China.

Objective: To explore the association of depression, as well as untreated hypertension or diabetes with all-cause death in community-based postmenopausal women in Beijing.

Methods: A cohort of 863 community-based postmenopausal women with no history of cardiovascular heart disease (CHD), stroke, cancer, or dementia was investigated on 20 July-28 September 2009 at baseline. Depression was diagnosed using the 30-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale with CES-D ≥ 11. Read More

J Clin Psychiatry 2020 06 9;81(4). Epub 2020 Jun 9.

Neuroendocrine Unit, BUL 457B, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114.

Objective: The neuroactive steroid metabolite of progesterone, allopregnanolone, is a positive allosteric modulator of γ-aminobutyric acid-A (GABAA) receptors and a putative treatment for mood disorders. This pilot study was performed to determine whether an oral allopregnanolone analog (ganaxolone) may be effective adjunctive therapy for persistent depression despite adequate antidepressant treatment in postmenopausal women.

Method: Ten postmenopausal women (mean ± SD age: 62. Read More

Climacteric 2020 10 17;23(5):482-488. Epub 2020 Apr 17.

Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.

Vasomotor symptoms (hot flashes, night sweats) are common during the menopausal transition. Pharmacotherapy is effective but is associated with health risks for some women. There is an increasing demand for non-pharmacological interventions. Read More

Breast Cancer Res Treat 2020 Jun 9;181(2):347-359. Epub 2020 Apr 9.

International Breast Cancer Study Group (IBCSG) Coordinating Center, Effingerstrasse 40, 3008, Bern, Switzerland.

Purpose: Sexual dysfunction is an important concern of premenopausal women with early breast cancer. We investigated predictors of sexual problems in two randomized controlled trials.

Methods: A subset of patients enrolled in TEXT and SOFT completed global and symptom-specific quality-of-life indicators, CES-Depression and MOS-Sexual Problems measures at baseline, six, 12 and 24 months. Read More

Menopause 2020 07;27(7):746-755

Department of Psychiatry, Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO.

Objective: Despite the fact that negative mood and executive dysfunction are common after risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO), occurring in up to a third of women, little is known about risk factors predicting these negative outcomes. Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) predict poorer health in adulthood and may be a risk factor for negative outcomes after RRSO. Given the complex relationship between early life stress, affective disorders, and cognitive dysfunction, we hypothesized that ACE would be associated with poorer executive function and that mood symptoms would partially mediate this relationship. Read More

Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2020 05 11;525(4):915-920. Epub 2020 Mar 11.

Department of Endocrinology, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong University, Ji-nan, 25000, China; Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Endocrinology and Lipid Metabolism, Ji-nan, 25000, China; Institute of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Shandong Academy of Clinical Medicine, Medicine, Ji-nan, 25000, China; School of Medicine, Shandong University, Ji-nan, 25000, China; Department of Endocrinology, Shandong Provincial Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University & Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Ji-nan, 25000, China. Electronic address:

Affective disorders are a set of mental disorders and particularly disrupt the mental health of susceptible women during puberty, pregnancy, parturition and menopause transition, which are characterized by dramatic changes in reproductive hormone profiles. The serum FSH level changes significantly during these periods; yet, the role of FSH in mood regulation is poorly understood. In the current study, FSHR knockout (Fshr) mice displayed enhanced affective disorder behaviors in an open field test and a forced swim test, accompanied by altered gene expression profiles. Read More

Obstet Gynecol 2020 04;135(4):853-868

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospitals of Cleveland, MacDonald Women's Hospital, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Cleveland, and Ms. Medicine, Cincinnati, Ohio.

Increasing numbers of women experience early menopause due in part to surgical treatment for benign gynecologic disorders and the rise in risk-reducing bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy in women with BRCA mutations. Unfortunately, the adverse health consequences of early loss of ovarian function accelerate the menopausal state and affect multiple systems, including cardiovascular, neurologic, bone, and connective tissue, and affect quality of life owing to vasomotor symptoms, mood, sleep, and sexual function. Yet many clinicians and women remain reluctant to use hormone therapy because of the Women's Health Initiative's adverse findings, even though they are not applicable to women with early menopause. Read More