Quality of life among perimenopausalSaudi working women and its impact on theirmenopausal symptoms

ABSTRACT

Menopause is emerged as a prominent issue in the women's health. It is a natural progression of women's life. Perception of menopausal symptoms is influenced by the broader social and cultural contexts in which such normative biological events are embedded. Some women viewed this period as an indicator of natural and inevitable life changes, while others view it as a problem that affects their quality of life. WHO defined quality of life as the individuals' perception of their status in life according to the cultural and value systems they live in, considering their aims, expectations, standards and worries. On the other hand, quality of life [QOL] is an important outcome that reflects the way women feel and function during menopausal period. So, this study aimed to identify the effect of quality of life among perimenopausal Saudi manager women on their menopausal symptoms. It was a descriptive study, where a convenient sample of 120 perimenopausal manager women, who are not using hormonal replacement therapy and willing to participate in the study, were selected from King Abdel Aziz University and King Abdel Aziz University Hospital in Jeddah. Two validated tools were used to collect data; menopausal symptoms inventory scale and Utain quality of life scale. The results clarified that the majority of perimenopausal women obtained moderate total score of QOL and a sizeable proportion got high total score of menopausal symptoms. The relationship between women's total score of QOL and their general characteristics was found to be statistically significant regarding level of education, years of work experience, marital status, and history of medical diseases. Statistically significant differences were also found between women's total score of menopausal symptoms and their general characteristics in relation to level of education, years of work experience, marital status, and age at marriage, duration of marriage, menstrual history, as well as history of medical diseases. Low and moderate total scores of symptoms were significantly higher among women with high total score of QOL, while high total score of symptoms was significantly higher among women with low and moderate total scores of QOL. quality of life had significant, negative effect on women's menopausal symptoms