Menopausal challenges as perceived by women in rural villages of Limpopo province, South Africa

Abstract

The study explored the challenges of menopause as perceived by participants in rural villages of Vhembe District. A cross-sectional study involved a sample of 500 women between the ages of 40 years and above. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data and was analysed descriptively. The results indicated that those experiencing night sweat were 39.1%, hot flushes (43.4%) and 43.4% difficulty falling asleep. As for urogenital category, about 50% reported frequency of urination while 41.3% and 35.2% reported having menstrual problems and issues related to ‘avoiding intimacy’respectively. Concerningmusculoskeletal symptoms, between 38% and 41.3% reported having joint aches/stiffness of the joints and low backache/muscle pains respectively.The study demonstrated a high prevalence of menopausal challenges among the perimenopausal and postmenopausal women, thus suggesting a need for an intervention to reduce the incidence of menopausal challenges associated with menopause in this population.