Academic Journal
Assessing age at natural menopause from self-reported data in a long-running population-based cohort study.
| Title: | Assessing age at natural menopause from self-reported data in a long-running population-based cohort study. |
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| Authors: | Pieterse IJ; Center for Prevention, Lifestyle and Health, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, the Netherlands; Department of Global Public Health and Bioethics, Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center (UMC) Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands. Electronic address: Isabel.pieterse@rivm.nl., Picavet HSJ; Center for Prevention, Lifestyle and Health, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, the Netherlands., Verschuren WMM; Center for Prevention, Lifestyle and Health, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Bilthoven, the Netherlands; Department of Global Public Health and Bioethics, Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center (UMC) Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands., Broekman BFP; Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, OLVG, Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam, the Netherlands. |
| Corporate Authors: | MenoPause Consortium |
| Source: | Maturitas [Maturitas] 2026 Aug; Vol. 211, pp. 109005. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 May 29. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Elsevier/North Holland Biomedical Press Country of Publication: Ireland NLM ID: 7807333 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1873-4111 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 03785122 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Maturitas Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: Limerick : Elsevier/North Holland Biomedical Press Original Publication: Amsterdam, Elsevier/North Holland Biomedical Press. |
| MeSH Terms: | Menopause* , Self Report*, Humans ; Female ; Reproducibility of Results ; Middle Aged ; Longitudinal Studies ; Age Factors ; Adult ; Cohort Studies |
| Abstract: | Objectives: To assess whether age at natural menopause could be determined through self-report, and evaluate consistency and reproducibility in self-reported age at natural menopause in a long-running population-based cohort study. Methods: We used longitudinal data from 3394 women participating in the Doetinchem Cohort Study (1987-2017), who reported menstrual status and age at menopause up to seven times over 30 years. We assessed the proportion of women for whom age at natural menopause could be determined, within-person variation across repeated reports, and reproducibility defined as agreement within one year across increasing recall intervals. Main Outcome Measures: Proportion determination of age at natural menopause, within-person variation across reports, and reproducibility defined as agreement within one year across increasing recall intervals. Results: Age at natural menopause could be determined in 57% of women who reached menopause during follow-up; in the remaining women, this was mainly precluded by hormone use and gynecologic surgery. Among women who had experienced natural menopause, 60% reported age differences of ≤2 years and 17% ≥4 years across reports. Variation increased with longer recall intervals, with underreporting among women already postmenopausal at baseline. Agreement within one year declined from 62% at 5 years to 45% at 30 years. Conclusion: For a substantial proportion of women, age at natural menopause is difficult to determine and inconsistently reported, especially over longer recall periods. Accurate documentation of menopausal status, hormone use, and surgical history are therefore crucial for both research and clinical care. Clear definitions and careful prospective documentation of hormone use can improve reproducibility and data quality, enhancing comparability across studies and supporting appropriate female-specific health care. (Copyright © 2026 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no competing interest. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Age at natural menopause; Doetinchem cohort study; Hormone replacement therapy; Menopausal status; Reproducibility; Self-report |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260603 Date Completed: 20260722 Latest Revision: 20260722 |
| Update Code: | 20260723 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.maturitas.2026.109005 |
| PMID: | 42235096 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1873-4111 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.maturitas.2026.109005 |