Menopause: Symptoms, Complaints, Signs

Climacteric complaints (menopausal symptoms) are experienced to varying degrees by patients. At the forefront of the complaints are disturbances in well-being, changes in the menstrual cycle, changes in organs and, in particular, cardiovascular complaints – for example, paroxysmal tachycardia (episodes of palpitations), palpitations (heart palpitations) – as well as a decrease in bone density. The following is an overview of typical menopausal symptoms:

Mental disorders

  • Anxiety
  • Cephalgia (headache)
  • Depressive moods
  • Insomnia* (sleep disorders) (about 50%).
  • Mattness, fatigability
  • Tendency to cry
  • Psychological lability
  • Irritability, nervousness*
  • Bad mood
  • Sexual problems (e.g. decreased libido/lack of desire)
  • Forgetfulness*
  • Vertigo (dizziness)

* These disorders are more commonly reported than vasomotor disorders such as hot flashes or organic disorders such as vaginal dryness (vaginal dryness).

Vasomotor vegetative disorders

  • Hot flashes
  • Sweating, possibly also night sweats (night sweats).
  • Circulatory instability
  • Cold sensation

Organic disorders

  • Decrease in HDL cholesterol and increase in LDL lipoproteins, resulting in increased risk of atherosclerosis (atherosclerosis, hardening of the arteries) (→ increased risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), myocardial infarction/heart attack).
  • Alopecia (hair loss; due torelative hyperandrogenemia).
  • Facial hypertrichosis/increase in facial hair (due torelative hyperandrogenemia).
  • Fluor vaginalis (vaginal discharge).
  • Weight gain
  • Urinary tract symptoms
  • Hypertension (high blood pressure)
  • Bone complaints, arthralgias (joint pain), myalgia (muscle pain).
  • Low back pain
  • Libido disorders (decreased desire for sexual intercourse).
  • Upper lip hair
  • Constipation (constipation)
  • Osteoporosis (bone loss)
  • Palpitations (heart palpitations)
  • Menstrual disorders (hypermenorrhea, menorrhagia, metrorrhagia, menometrorrhagia).
  • Postmenopausal bleeding
  • Back and joint problems
  • Polyarthritis ( inflammation of five or more joints; especially the small joints).
  • Urogenital atrophy:
    • Atrophic senile colpitis/vaginal dryness (vaginal dryness/dry vagina).
      • Dyspareunia (pain during sexual intercourse).
      • Pruritus vulvae(itching of the vagina).
      • Burning
      • Feeling of pressure and tension
      • Fluor vaginalis (vaginal discharge)
      • Petechiae (“fleabite-like mucosal bleeding”).
      • Bleeding
    • Dysuria (difficult and painful urination).
    • Increased risk of infection → recurrent urinary tract infections (UTI).
    • Urinary incontinence (bladder weakness due tooveractive bladder).
  • Xeroderma (drying of the skin) with wrinkling (due tocollagen loss).