Impact of Hormone Replacement Therapy on the Quality of Life in Climacteric Women / 中国药学杂志

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of hormone replacement therapy(HRT) on the quality of life in climacteric women. METHODS: The 202 patients were collected and divided into three groups according to whether or not they were treated with HRT group 1 (not HRT), group 2 (HRT for the first time), group 3 (HRT for more than one year). All patients received follow-up visiting once per three months for one year. They were evaluated by the professionals through Kupperman index(KI), menopause-specific quality of life questionnaire(MENQOL), self-rating anxiety scale(SAS), self-rating depression scale(SDS). All patients were guided to improve the way of life. RESULTS: After a year, KI, MENQOL and SAS in the three groups were improved significantly (P=0.003, 0.007, 0.014). KI and MENQOL were improved earlier than SAS. SDS was improved but not significantly(P=0.109). KI, MENQOL, SAS and SDS of patients in group 1 were improved significantly, but improved more weakly than those in group 2 and group 3. There is negative correlation between HRT and the values of every scale, and there is positive correlation between culture degree and SAS, SDS score values. CONCLUSION: HRT canim prove the quality of life in climacteric women. The improvement in physical symptoms is earlier than that in mental symptoms. Anxiety and depression are more likely to occur in menopausal patients with high degree of education. Traditional Chinese medicine, exercise therapy and physical rehabilitation can be used as an auxiliary treatment for patients who are unable or unwilling to accept the HRT.