A survey exploring knowledge and attitudes towards menopause among menopausal people in Sri Lanka.

Abstract

Background: Every woman goes through menopause, which is a natural yet crucial stage that affects overall health and wellbeing. Lack of knowledge and negative attitudes towards menopause can have a detrimental impact on women's quality of life and make them suffer more. By diagnosing symptoms early, women can improve their quality of life both during and after menopause. One fourth of Sri Lankan population consist of women and menopause is an under researched topic in Sri Lanka. The purpose of this study was to explore menopausal women's knowledge of and attitudes towards the menopause in Sri Lanka.

Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 57 women in Sri Lanka between 45-65 years using a quantitative study method and the participants were recruited through non-probability sampling approach. Data collection tool was an online questionnaire and analysis of data was done using SPSS version 28. A probability of p<0.05 was considered as significant.

Results: The study found that while most menopausal women are aware of what menopause is, 45.6% have little knowledge about it, with only 5.3% having very good knowledge. Over half of the participants were unaware of symptoms brought up by menopause, and only 10.5% knew about hormone replacement therapy. Most women believed that physical changes during menopause were inevitable and hence acceptable. 43.9% believed menopause marked the end of sexual life. However, only 14% had a positive view, and 24.6% had a negative view due to the loss of youth and fertility and other’s views were neutral. Additionally, 44.6% of respondents had no education about menopause at school, and 36.8% believed it was not necessary to consult a doctor during menopause. More than half of the population stated that they occasionally discuss openly about menopause with friends and family and 31.4% said they never discuss menopause openly.

Conclusions: Sri Lankan menopausal women had limited knowledge and mainly negative and neutral attitudes towards menopause. Healthcare professionals, especially public health midwives, therefore, should act as the major source of information regarding menopause-dispensing advice to women during menopausal transition.