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Mapping the Menopause
Posted 12 June 2009
PHI researchers are building an understanding of the normal hormonal changes that take place in women as they approach menopause.
Prof Henry Burger and A/Prof David Robertson have been part of an Australian team mapping the fluctuations in women’s cycles and blood hormone levels.
A younger women’s cycle is usually about every month but, as menopause approaches, cycles often become more irregular and unpredictable. Other menopausal symptoms can include hot flushes.
In the study of 77 women, researchers were able to classify menstrual cycles in older women into three different types based upon their changes in hormonal levels. The recent findings from the PHI team have relevance in understanding fertility, hormone disorders and other ovarian health issues associated with menopause transition.
A common question posed is whether we will one day be able to predict the precise onset of menopause.
PHI researcher and former Institute Director Professor Henry Burger says “our findings do show that significant changes in some hormone levels can occur up to five years before a women’s last cycle, however a universal test based on such understandings may be difficult since there is a great deal of variation between women.”