Racial and regional differences in age at menopause

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: We examined the age at menopause in Black and White women and regional differences in age at menopause among women residing in the United States.DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Reasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke Study evaluates geographic and racial differences in stroke in a population-based cohort of Black and White persons aged >45 years. We studied female participants aged 45-75 years in 2003-7 (n = 20,135). We excluded women with surgical removal of the uterus/ovaries, premenopausal status or with missing data on menopausal status or one of the covariates. The final sample comprised 7,427 menopausal women. We used multiple linear regression to compare self-reported age at menopause between Black and White women and among women residing in 4 geographical regions: South, Northeast, Midwest and West. Pairwise comparisons were performed in the analyses to adjust for covariates known to be associated with menopausal age (chronological age, parity and smoking history) and for common chronic diseases that might affect ovarian vascular health: hypertension and diabetes mellitus.Table 1RegionAge at menopauseSTD‡P-value for comparison to South regionP-value†Adjusting for age, race, smoking, hypertension and diabetes mellitusAdjusted age at menopauseSTD‡P-value for comparison to South regionP-valueSouth49.55.4–49.55.4–Northeast50.35.00.000350.35.00.0004West50.25.30.000850.15.30.004Midwest50.05.20.01350.05.20.007‡ P-value for comparison to South region† Adjusting for age, race, smoking, hypertension and diabetes mellitus Open table in a new tab CONCLUSIONS: We observed no difference in the self-reported age at menopause between Black and White women in the United States. However, women who reside in the South reported undergoing menopause earlier than those living elsewhere. Reasons for earlier menopause in the South are not clear, but could be related to diet and/or environmental factors. Further study confirming these findings using a more robust measure of age at menopause are warranted. OBJECTIVE: We examined the age at menopause in Black and White women and regional differences in age at menopause among women residing in the United States. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The Reasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke Study evaluates geographic and racial differences in stroke in a population-based cohort of Black and White persons aged >45 years. We studied female participants aged 45-75 years in 2003-7 (n = 20,135). We excluded women with surgical removal of the uterus/ovaries, premenopausal status or with missing data on menopausal status or one of the covariates. The final sample comprised 7,427 menopausal women. We used multiple linear regression to compare self-reported age at menopause between Black and White women and among women residing in 4 geographical regions: South, Northeast, Midwest and West. Pairwise comparisons were performed in the analyses to adjust for covariates known to be associated with menopausal age (chronological age, parity and smoking history) and for common chronic diseases that might affect ovarian vascular health: hypertension and diabetes mellitus. CONCLUSIONS: We observed no difference in the self-reported age at menopause between Black and White women in the United States. However, women who reside in the South reported undergoing menopause earlier than those living elsewhere. Reasons for earlier menopause in the South are not clear, but could be related to diet and/or environmental factors. Further study confirming these findings using a more robust measure of age at menopause are warranted.