Knowledge of Bahraini women about the menopause and hormone therapy: implications for health-care policy

Abstract

Objectives To investigate the knowledge of Bahraini women aged 30–64 years about menopause, hormone therapy (HT) and their associated health risks. To examine the relationship between the knowledge of Bahraini women about menopause and their sociodemographic and reproductive characteristics.Design A cross-sectional study was conducted of 260 Bahraini women attending primary health-care centers. A multistage, stratified and clustered random sampling technique was used. The women were interviewed using a structured questionnaire composed of the Menopause Knowledge Scale and sociodemographics.Results The mean knowledge percentage of all participants was 59.86, with a standard deviation of 25.77. There were significant differences in the mean knowledge percentages among categories of education (p = 0.025) and employment (p = 0.005). No significant differences in the mean knowledge percentages were found among categories of menopausal status. The statement with the highest percentage of correct answers was ‘Pregnancy cannot occur after menopause’ (75.8%). Statements regarding risk of cardiovascular diseases had the lowest percentage of correct answers, ‘HT increases risk of cardiovascular diseases’ (33.8%) and ‘Risk of cardiovascular diseases increases with menopause’ (40.0%).Conclusion The knowledge of Bahraini women about menopause and HT is average. Lack of knowledge was greatest in areas related to heart disease. Better education about menopause needs to be achieved regarding the long-term risk associated with menopause and the pros and cons of HT.