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Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners
Is there any way to ascertain if I am in premature perimenopause?
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I am 38 and have been displaying peri menopausal symptoms including significant changes to my period, mood swings, hot flashes, night sweats, forgetfulness, and more.
I have been told that I am too young to be in peri menopause, and would like to find out what I can do to know what is happening. I have been experiencing an increased level of stress over recent years however it is only the last 4 -6 months that the symptoms (particularly moodiness and crying) have reached concerning levels. I have always been a very happy and positive person but feel like this is changing and I cannot explain why. -
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Jean Hailes for Women’s Health is a leader in women’s health, supported by funding from the Australian Government. We provide trusted and easy-to-understand information to … View Profile
There is no reliable test to determine when you will reach menopause (have your final period): Hormone levels can fluctuate enormously during perimenopause, and perimenopause itself can continue for up to 10 years (though the average is 4-6 years). About 1% of women (1 in 100) experience premature menopause, that is their periods stop permanently before age 40.
For more information on perimenopause, see www.managingmenopause.org.au/health-issues/257-perimenopause;
For more on spontaneous (natural, rather than e.g. treatment-induced) premature menopause, see www.earlymenopause.org.au/premature-ovarian-failureReport this post
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Dr Barry Wren
Endocrinologist, Gynaecologist
Dr Barry Wren was one of the original founders of the International Menopause Society in 1976 and subsequently founded the Australian Menopause Society, becoming its … View Profile
The peri-menopause is that period of time when the ovary is running out of eggs and is associated with many different symptoms and physiological alterations to a woman's feelings and body function. At birth a baby has about 2 million eggs in her ovaries. She begins to lose these eggs rapidly as she grows and matures, so that at the time she begins to menstruate, she may have only 250,00 eggs left. Most women run out of all the eggs in their ovaries about 45-55 years of age, but the ovaries of some women are devoid of all eggs in their 30's. Some hormone investigations can be carried out that help determine if any woman has a resonable number of eggs remaining, or alternativel may indicate if she is close to entering her menopause. The special cells surrounding an egg in the ovary (granulosa cells) produce several hormones that can be measured and help to indicate the approximate situation regarding the ovarian egg number. These hormones are the Ant-Mullerian Hormone level (an AMH level below 10 would suggest low numbers of eggs while an AMH level below 5 suggests the menopause is imminent), absent progesterone levels in the third week of a menstrual cycle indicates failure of normal ovulation while an elevated FSH level suggests the ovary is becoming incapable of responding to the normal control mechanism and is incapable of producing sufficient estradiol. All of these hormone assays help to determine if a woman in the age group 30-45 years has a reasonable number of eggs in her ovaries and is able to become pregnant, or whether she is about to enter her menopause.
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