|
|
|
Menopause Survey Underway
Wezi Tjaronda, New Era (Windhoek)
2008-03-07
A medical survey on menopause and its symptoms is underway in six regions of the country. Some women have committed suicide because they confused menopause with HIV/AIDS symptoms. Menopause is the time in a women's life when menstrual periods stop. This occurs when the ovaries naturally begin decreasing the production of sex hormones, oestrogen and progesterone. On average, women reach menopause at the age of 51 years although it can occur earlier between 30 and 40 years and much later at 60 years in some women. Most women, however, experience menopause between 45 and 55 years.
The survey, which started yesterday, will investigate and assess the knowledge
of menopause and menopausal symptoms, whose information is not as widespread as
that of HIV/AIDS. Some symptoms of menopause are similar to those of HIV/AIDS,
which according to unconfirmed reports have not only led to some women
committing suicide but are also responsible for broken relationships.
Eunice Iipinge, the head of the gender research and training division at the
Multi-Disciplinary Research and Consultancy Centre (MRCC) at the University of
Namibia said, when she announced the survey yesterday, it is believed that some
women in the Omusati and Caprivi regions committed suicide because they feared
they had HIV/AIDS. However, hormonal dysfunction that disrupts ovulation can
also lead to abnormal bleeding, which may be more common in HIV-positive women,
although studies are inconclusive, other reports say. Symptoms of menopause
include irregular periods, hot flushes, night sweats, vaginal symptoms such as
dryness and itching, urinary symptoms, fatigue, memory and sleeping problems.
Iipinge said if there was widespread information about HIV/AIDS and related
symptoms and little knowledge about menopause and related symptoms, women could
likely confuse and take negative actions in response to menopausal symptoms
especially in rural areas where health facilities are limited.
A national gender study in 2000, which looked at health services in Namibia
found that the least limited services at health facilities were those dealing
with menopause. She said the study would include men because of
misunderstandings of menopausal symptoms that may lead to confusion and
potential erroneous conclusions. A pilot phase of the study in the Khomas Region
found that only one out of four men knew about menopause, said Iipinge. The
study will assess the knowledge and understanding of women and men about
menopause and its symptoms, determine the availability of information regarding
menopause and where it can be found, ascertain traditional ways of passing on
information from one generation to the other and examine coping strategies of
women going through menopause. The study will also determine participants'
knowledge of HIV/AIDS and related symptoms for them to differentiate menopause
and HIV/AIDS and identify health facilities that are available to assist women
with menopausal issues. Twenty-six field researchers in Khomas, Oshana and
Omusati, Omaheke and Hardap, Erongo and Kunene, Kavango and Caprivi, will
conduct the study.
Some of the regions were grouped together considering their traditional ways of
dealing with issues. The MRCC and the Namibia National Women's Organisation is
behind the study in consultation with the United Nations Population Fund.
|
News
