Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Turkiye Klinikleri Journal of Medical Sciences, cilt.26, sa.6, ss.675-684, 2006 (Scopus)
Menopause is a period during which significant hormonal changes are noted in the female organism. Although the age of menopause ranges between 35 and 55, the average age is 51.5 in the western world. This means that a third of a woman's life is postmenopausal. There are many marked changes in the female organism due to menopause that affect many organs and accompany physiological changes. Some of the more frequent signs are hot flashes, sleep disorders and depression. The decreased estrogen level leads to a sequence of events that accelerate skin aging, decrease its elasticity and increase its dry ness. Other unwanted changes in the oral mucosa and the hair are also reported. Estrogen's protection of the skin against aging decreases greatly with menopause, adding hormonal aging signs to those of chronological and environmental aging. The aged appearance of the skin therefore becomes more prominent with menopause. Skin aging is a process starting with thinning of the skin, followed by the skin becoming damaged more easily and ending with wrinkling and an increased number of deeper wrinkles. There are also changes in the female sex organs due to decreased estrogen. These are decreased breast glandular tissue, smaller uterus, regressing endometrium, shorter and narrower vagina, atrophy of the vaginal epithelium and external genital organs, decreased pubic hair and thinning of the urinary system epithelium. Atrophic vulvovaginitis, vulvodynia and lichen sclerosis can accompany these vulvar and vaginal changes in menopause. Copyright © 2006 by Türkiye Klinikleri.