Menopause health science PPT

Menopause is a normal physiological transition stage for women. It is not about "a deterioration of personality" or "something to suffer when you get old." More than 90% of uncomfortable symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, irritability, and insomnia can be significantly relieved through scientific intervention, and there is no need to deal with it forcefully.

I have been in the gynecology clinic for almost 10 years and have met too many patients who have misunderstandings about menopause. Last week, there was a 47-year-old sister who had been suffering from insomnia for more than three months. She kept her eyes open from two o'clock in the morning until dawn every day. She sweated and squeezed water out of her pajamas. She insisted on saying, "Everyone has been through this, just bear with it." When I asked, I found out that she had not had a period for half a year. It was a typical perimenopausal syndrome, and she was still in the dark.

Many people still only think of menopause as having a bad temper. In fact, symptoms of menopause can appear from head to toe: Some people may feel a burst of heat from their chest to their face at every turn, and they have to open windows for ventilation in the middle of winter. People next to them think she is having a fever.； Some people have a dull pain in the seams between their bones. The pain in their knees cannot be relieved after climbing a building for a long time. Treatment for arthritis for more than half a year has no effect at all. ； Others have sudden emotional breakdowns. They are upset when their husbands do housework or their children come home late. After a fight, they hide in the toilet and cry. They even wonder if they are suffering from depression.

As for the intervention method that everyone is most concerned about, there is indeed no unified "standard answer" in the industry, and the ideas of different systems vary greatly: in the Western medicine system, the most effective is menopausal hormone therapy (MHT). As long as it is within 10 years of menopause, under the age of 60, and has no contraindications such as breast lesions, endometrial lesions, and active thrombosis, the benefits of standardized use far outweigh the risks. It can not only quickly relieve symptoms, but also prevent the occurrence of osteoporosis and cardiovascular diseases in the elderly. But there are also many people who are born with concerns about hormones, which is also very normal. The traditional Chinese medicine system is more inclined to syndrome differentiation and conditioning. For example, the kidney yin deficiency syndrome with obvious hot flashes and night sweats can be treated with Zhibai Dihuang Pills. The liver stagnation syndrome with frequent sighs and breast pain can be treated with Xiaoyao Pills. I have many patients who took Chinese medicine for three months, and their symptoms improved by 70 to 80%. There are also people who don’t want to take either Western medicine or Chinese medicine, but they can still be surprised by adjusting their lifestyle. I met a 50-year-old aunt before. After she retired, she signed up for a folk dance class. She danced with her old sisters for an hour every afternoon, and even went hiking in the suburbs on weekends. She was so bored that she didn’t even want to cook. After dancing for more than half a year, she basically didn’t suffer from hot flashes, and she slept a lot better.

Oh, by the way, here is a widely spread misunderstanding: many people wave their hands when they hear "hormones" and say, "hormone supplements will cause breast cancer." This statement is really too old. If the current standard combined estrogen and progestogen therapy is used within 5 years, the risk of breast cancer is even lower than drinking alcoholic beverages three times a week. As long as you follow up regularly, there is no need to panic. Of course, if there are indeed contraindications for the use of hormones, there are completely other alternatives such as botanical medicines and topical medicines, so there is no need to hang yourself from a tree.

There are also two hidden risks that are easily ignored by everyone. I always mention them to patients repeatedly during every consultation: one is bone loss. In the 5 years before menopause, bone mass loses 2%-5% every year, which is several times faster than when they were young. Many elderly people in their 70s suffer fractures after falling. The root cause is actually that they did not pay attention to calcium and vitamin D supplements during menopause.； The other is atrophy of the genitourinary tract. Many people after menopause experience frequent urination and sexual intercourse pain. They think it is gynecological inflammation, and washing it for a long time has no effect. In fact, it is the thinning of the mucous membrane caused by the decrease in estrogen. It can be cured by applying some estrogen ointment locally. There is no need to be embarrassed to tell the doctor.

In fact, after all, menopause is just like menstruation in adolescence, pregnancy and childbirth. It is an inevitable stage in a woman's life. There is no need to treat it as a scourge, and there is no need to be kidnapped by the saying "everyone has endured it". Are you willing to take some medicine to quickly relieve the symptoms, go out to square dance every day to relax, or find a traditional Chinese medicine doctor to slowly adjust your symptoms? As long as you can make yourself comfortable, that is the best way. If you are really uncomfortable, don’t frighten yourself by blindly searching on Baidu. Go to the menopause clinic of a regular hospital, and the doctors will be able to give you appropriate advice.