Menopause: Changes in sleep pattern could determine stage of transition period – study

Sophie Wessex: Nobody talks about periods or menopause

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Perimenopause refers to the years that precede the cessation of periods, when fluctuation in hormones will trigger a host of changes in the female body. This transition period is typically characterised by fraught symptoms including emotional upheavals, exhaustion, panic attacks, insomnia and aching joints. Studies have identified how these changes in sleep particularly, could help determine the exact stage of a woman’s menopause period.

Of the 30 symptoms linked to perimenopause, changes in sleep are widely recognised as being one of the most significant features of menopause.

A team of researchers probing perimenopausal stages through changes in nighttime insomnia determined that sleeplessness was more prevalent during the later stages of menopause.

Sleeplessness during menopause is often tied in with hot flushes, which can cause considerable discomfort throughout the night.

Colleen Ciano, of the University of Pennsylvania, said: “The data suggests that early peri-menopause is protective against the development of nighttime insomnia symptoms and therefore can protect against the development of incoming disorders.

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“Women that progress through menopausal transition naturally have less risk of developing nighttime insomnia symptoms when compared to women surgically transitioned to menopause.

For the study, Ciano and colleagues analysed data on 3,302 obtained from a dataset used for the Women’s Health Across the Nation study, in a bid to identify the stage of perimenopause.

At the outset of the study, 6 percent of participants were identified as being in the early stages or middle of perimenopause.

The study found that participants who remained in the early stages of menopause were 0.82 times less likely to develop insomnia.

Nighttime insomnia symptoms at the end of the follow-up period compared with the beginning were three times more likely among participants who progressed from early to late menopause.

Ciano told Endocrine Today: “The clinical implications of this study provide medical providers with a timeframe to intervene with screening assessments and preventative interventions to alter the course of nighttime insomnia symptoms in an already predisposed population at high risk for developing insomnia disorder.

“Research should include interventions implemented during the early perimenopausal period to prevent the progression of nighttime insomnia symptoms to insomnia disorder using non-psychological treatments and applications if needed.

“Future research needs to incorporate objective and subjective sleep measurements, hormonal levels and an inclusion of skin conductance measures for vasomotor symptoms.”

A study published in Nature last month identified genetic variants that may be able to predict when a woman will stop having her period.

The team at Exeter University identified 300 gene variations which influence menopause age.

Researchers believe the genetic variants could also identify those at risk of early menopause, and help women plan for the transition period.

Menopause typically affects women around the age of 51, when a woman’s oestrogen levels start to decline.

The NHS notes: “Most women will experience menopausal symptoms. Some of these can be quite severe and have a significant impact on your everyday activities.

“Around one in 100 women experience the menopause before 40 years of age. This is known as premature variant insufficiency.”

Lifestyle changes are often recommended as one of the prime measures to help appease symptoms associated with menopause.

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