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Healthcare
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Menopause Transition and Postmenopausal Health
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Menopause Transition and Postmenopausal Health

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032). This special issue belongs to the section "Women’s and Children’s Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 May 2026) | Viewed by 11081

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Xuewen Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Exercise Science, School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208, USA
Interests: women’s health; aging; metabolism; physical activity; sleep
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to invite you to submit your work to this Special Issue on the menopause transition and postmenopausal health. Women may experience a variety of health issues as they go through menopause and after menopause. These issues could impact their health status and lifespan.

This Special Issue aims to publish work relevant to the health issues of women during the menopause transition and after menopause.

Original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following: observations, interventional studies on prevention or treatment, clinical and health care, research methods, concept development, and feasibility studies.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Xuewen Wang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Healthcare is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • menopause transition
  • postmenopause
  • midlife
  • older women
  • health issues

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review, Other

14 pages, 399 KB  
Article
Examining the Mediating Role of Psychological Resilience in the Relationship Between Religious Coping and Menopausal Symptoms
by Fatma Soylu Çakmak, Yeliz Yıldırım Varışoğlu and Meserret Aslan
Healthcare 2026, 14(10), 1373; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14101373 - 18 May 2026
Viewed by 321
Abstract
Background/Objectives: This study aimed to examine whether psychological resilience mediates the relationship between religious coping behaviors and menopausal symptoms among postmenopausal women. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Türkiye between July 2024 and July 2025 with women aged 45–60 years in the [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: This study aimed to examine whether psychological resilience mediates the relationship between religious coping behaviors and menopausal symptoms among postmenopausal women. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Türkiye between July 2024 and July 2025 with women aged 45–60 years in the natural menopausal period (n = 190). Data were collected using a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS), the Religious Coping Styles Scale (RCSS), and the 10-item Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10). Descriptive statistics, Spearman correlation analysis, and structural equation modeling (SEM) with robust estimation were performed. The potential mediating role of psychological resilience was examined using SEM. Results: Negative religious coping was significantly associated with lower psychological resilience (β = −0.17, p = 0.050). However, psychological resilience did not show a significant association with menopausal symptoms in the structural model (β = −0.11, p = 0.134). Positive religious coping was not significantly related to resilience (β = −0.04, p = 0.649). The overall model explained a low proportion of variance in menopausal symptoms (R2 ≈ 0.05). No evidence of a mediating effect of psychological resilience was found. Bootstrapped indirect effects indicated that the mediating role of psychological resilience was not statistically significant, as the confidence interval included zero. Conclusions: Although psychological resilience and religious coping were associated at the correlational level, no evidence of a mediating effect was found. The low explanatory power of the model suggests that menopausal symptoms are influenced by broader biological and contextual factors. The findings should be interpreted cautiously, and further longitudinal research is needed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Menopause Transition and Postmenopausal Health)
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15 pages, 751 KB  
Article
Fat Mass Is Associated with Aging Rather than Menopausal Transition
by Carmen Gabriela Barbu, Irina Manuela Nistor, Alice Albu, Sorina Carmen Martin, Theodor Eugen Oprea, Anca Elena Sirbu, Adelina Vlad and Simona Fica
Healthcare 2026, 14(3), 333; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14030333 - 28 Jan 2026
Viewed by 947
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Midlife is associated with changes in body weight and fat distribution in women; however, it remains unclear whether these changes can be attributed to chronological aging, menopause, or associated lifestyle changes. The objective of this study was to compare the possible [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Midlife is associated with changes in body weight and fat distribution in women; however, it remains unclear whether these changes can be attributed to chronological aging, menopause, or associated lifestyle changes. The objective of this study was to compare the possible differences in body fat distribution parameters measured by regional Lunar osteodensitometry scans (DXA) between clinically healthy, BMI-matched pre- and postmenopausal women. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of body composition parameters, such as total body, android, and gynoid fat percentage, was performed using DXA hip and lumbar scans in 171 women aged 45–55 years. Comparisons were made across 50 premenopausal (median age 47.9 (4.5) years) and 121 postmenopausal women (median age 51.7 (3.7) years), matched for median BMI (25.8 (6.7) vs. 25.6 (7.8) kg/m2). Associations between body fat outcomes and predictors were examined using multivariable linear regression. Results: No significant differences were observed between study groups in body composition parameters, including android fat percentage (%), gynoid fat%, total body fat%, or android/gynoid ratio. Unlike age, menopausal status, or years since menopause, BMI was the only significant predictor of body fat distribution. In the entire cohort, total body fat percentage showed a modest but significant positive correlation with age (ρ = 0.200, 95%CI [0.043, 0.345], p = 0.009), while the menopause onset age was positively correlated with BMI (ρ = 0.195, 95%CI [0.002, 0.369], p = 0.032). Among postmenopausal women within the first two years of menopause, the android/gynoid ratio showed a positive correlation with years of estrogen deprivation (ρ = 0.451, 95%CI [0.144, 0.707], p = 0.007). Conclusions: Age was correlated with higher total body fat %; neither age nor menopausal status was correlated with BMI. In early postmenopause, the android/gynoid ratio increased with years since menopause. The median age at menopause observed in our study was 48 years, which is lower than in other Caucasian studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Menopause Transition and Postmenopausal Health)
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Review

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15 pages, 301 KB  
Review
Menopause-Related Changes in Sleep and the Associations with Cardiometabolic Health: A Narrative Review
by Joshua R. Sparks and Xuewen Wang
Healthcare 2025, 13(17), 2085; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13172085 - 22 Aug 2025
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 5488
Abstract
This narrative review examines the complex relationship between sleep changes during the menopausal transition and cardiometabolic risks. The most common complaint about sleep is increased awakenings during sleep. Other complaints include having trouble falling asleep, waking up too early, insufficient and non-restorative sleep, [...] Read more.
This narrative review examines the complex relationship between sleep changes during the menopausal transition and cardiometabolic risks. The most common complaint about sleep is increased awakenings during sleep. Other complaints include having trouble falling asleep, waking up too early, insufficient and non-restorative sleep, and overall poor quality. Sleep determined using objective methods also indicates that greater awakenings after sleep onset are associated with the period of menopausal transition. Polysomnography recordings suggest physiological hyperarousal during sleep. Changes in other sleep metrics, such as sleep latency and sleep duration, are less consistent, and some studies suggest they may not worsen during the menopausal transition. These sleep issues are influenced by multiple factors, such as hormonal fluctuations, vasomotor symptoms, and psychosocial factors, and evidence suggests that hypothalamic kisspeptin/neurokinin B/dynorphin (KNDy) neurons are key underlying mechanisms for these associations. The menopausal transition is also associated with increases in cardiometabolic risk factors, such as body fat, altered lipid profiles, blood pressure, and vascular health. Emerging evidence suggests that poor sleep health during this period is associated with increased cardiometabolic risks and adverse cardiovascular outcomes. Thus, addressing sleep disturbances is crucial for comprehensive healthcare during the menopausal transition to safeguard long-term cardiometabolic health. Future research is needed to investigate interventions that can improve sleep and their impact on cardiometabolic health in this population experiencing increases in cardiometabolic risk. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Menopause Transition and Postmenopausal Health)

Other

Jump to: Research, Review

27 pages, 2130 KB  
Systematic Review
Nonpharmacological Intervention Effects on Middle-Aged Women with Menopausal Symptoms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
by Ji-Hyun Kim and Hea-Jin Yu
Healthcare 2025, 13(24), 3206; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13243206 - 8 Dec 2025
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2808
Abstract
Background: Middle-aged women frequently experience diverse physical and psychological symptoms, including depression, anxiety, sleep disturbances, vasomotor symptoms, and reduced quality of life, during menopause. With increasing concerns regarding the side effects of hormone therapy, nonpharmacological interventions have emerged as safer alternatives for symptom [...] Read more.
Background: Middle-aged women frequently experience diverse physical and psychological symptoms, including depression, anxiety, sleep disturbances, vasomotor symptoms, and reduced quality of life, during menopause. With increasing concerns regarding the side effects of hormone therapy, nonpharmacological interventions have emerged as safer alternatives for symptom management. Purpose: This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the effectiveness of nonpharmacological interventions for menopausal symptoms in middle-aged women. Methods: Thirty-two randomized controlled trials were selected from eight international and domestic databases. Interventions were categorized as nutritional or herbal, psychological, exercise-based, and complementary therapies. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool, and meta-analyses were performed using a random effects model. Results: Nonpharmacological interventions significantly reduced symptoms of depression (standardized mean difference (SMD) = −1.10), anxiety (−0.82), sleep disturbances (−0.90), menopausal symptoms (−1.18), and hot flashes (−0.34). Improvement in quality of life was observed, but it was not statistically significant (SMD = 1.40). Subgroup analyses revealed that nutritional and herbal interventions had the most consistent effects, and psychological and exercise-based interventions were particularly effective for improving sleep outcomes and emotional well-being. Conclusions: Nonpharmacological interventions effectively improve menopausal symptoms and quality of life, with tailored and multifaceted approaches showing the greatest impact. Nurse-led, community-based programs are key delivery platforms, and sustainable outcomes require standardized protocols, cultural responsiveness, and ongoing evaluation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Menopause Transition and Postmenopausal Health)
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