TY - JOUR
T1 - Attitudes toward menopause in HIV-infected and at-risk women
AU - Hartel, Diana
AU - Lo, Yungtai
AU - Bauer, Carolyn
AU - Budner, Nancy
AU - Howard, Andrea A.
AU - Floris-Moore, Michelle
AU - Arnsten, Julia H.
AU - Santoro, Nanette
AU - Schoenbaum, Ellie E.
PY - 2008
Y1 - 2008
N2 - Objective: To study attitudes toward menopause in women with or at risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) aged 35 to 60 in New York City, NY, USA. Design: Data were obtained at the baseline interview in a cohort study of menopause. Of 502 participating women, 92 were postmenopausal and 162 were perimenopausal. Results: Overall, 37.5% of women had a relatively favorable attitude toward menopause. African Americans had a 72% greater odds of a positive attitude (OR = 1.72, 95% CI 1.16-2.57) than all other groups after adjusting for covariates. Hispanic women had the least favorable view of menopause. Experience of > 3 menopausal symptoms and negative life events - being a witness to a murder, and the death of a child - were significantly associated with negative attitudes towards menopause (OR = 0.62, 95% CI 0.42-0.93 and OR = 0.64, 95% CI 0.43-0.93, respectively). Depressive symptoms, street drug use, and having a domestic partner, which is significant in single variable analyses, did not remain independent predictors in multivariate results. HIV status, menopause status, and age at interview were not associated with menopause attitudes. Conclusions: HIV-infected, drug-using, low-income women showed generally unfavorable attitudes towards menopause. High stress life events coupled with a high prevalence of depressive symptoms indicate this population has special needs marked by the menopause transition into older age.
AB - Objective: To study attitudes toward menopause in women with or at risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) aged 35 to 60 in New York City, NY, USA. Design: Data were obtained at the baseline interview in a cohort study of menopause. Of 502 participating women, 92 were postmenopausal and 162 were perimenopausal. Results: Overall, 37.5% of women had a relatively favorable attitude toward menopause. African Americans had a 72% greater odds of a positive attitude (OR = 1.72, 95% CI 1.16-2.57) than all other groups after adjusting for covariates. Hispanic women had the least favorable view of menopause. Experience of > 3 menopausal symptoms and negative life events - being a witness to a murder, and the death of a child - were significantly associated with negative attitudes towards menopause (OR = 0.62, 95% CI 0.42-0.93 and OR = 0.64, 95% CI 0.43-0.93, respectively). Depressive symptoms, street drug use, and having a domestic partner, which is significant in single variable analyses, did not remain independent predictors in multivariate results. HIV status, menopause status, and age at interview were not associated with menopause attitudes. Conclusions: HIV-infected, drug-using, low-income women showed generally unfavorable attitudes towards menopause. High stress life events coupled with a high prevalence of depressive symptoms indicate this population has special needs marked by the menopause transition into older age.
KW - Attitudes
KW - HIV
KW - Menopause
KW - Street drug users
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M3 - Article
C2 - 18982926
AN - SCOPUS:54949139969
SN - 1176-9092
VL - 3
SP - 561
EP - 566
JO - Clinical Interventions in Aging
JF - Clinical Interventions in Aging
IS - 3
ER -