Retrospective Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Nov 16, 2023; 11(32): 7761-7769
Published online Nov 16, 2023. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v11.i32.7761
Association between depressive mood and body image and menopausal symptoms and sexual function in perimenopausal women
Jia Ling, Yu-Hong Wang
Jia Ling, Yu-Hong Wang, Institute of Innovation and Applied Research in Chinese Medicine, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, Hunan Province, China.
Author contributions: Ling J and Wang YH contributed equally to this work; Ling J and Wang YH designed the study; Ling J contributed to the analysis of the manuscript; Ling J and Wang YH were involved in the data and writing of this article; and all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Institutional review board statement: This study was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Hunan University of Chinese Medicine.
Informed consent statement: Patients were not required to give informed consent to the study because the analysis used anonymous clinical data that were obtained after each patient agreed to treatment by written consent.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest regarding the content, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yu-Hong Wang, PhD, Doctor, Institute of Innovation and Applied Research in Chinese Medicine, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, No. 300 Xueshi Road, Hanpu Science and Education Park, Changsha 410208, Hunan Province, China. ojhtgb000@163.com
Received: August 16, 2023
Peer-review started: August 16, 2023
First decision: August 31, 2023
Revised: September 19, 2023
Accepted: November 8, 2023
Article in press: November 8, 2023
Published online: November 16, 2023
Processing time: 91 Days and 18.8 Hours
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Perimenopause is the period when women's ovarian function begins to decline before and after menopause. During this period, women experience a series of mental state changes, such as decreased hormone levels, decreased libido, and even female sexual dysfunction (FSD) in severe cases, which reduces their quality of life. Factors affecting the occurrence of FSD include physiological and non-physiological factors, among which physiological factors are uncontrollable. Therefore, it is particularly important to ascertain the related non-physiological factors that affect the occurrence of FSD for improving the quality of sexual life of perimenopausal women.

Research motivation

To observe the related non physiological factors that affect the occurrence of perimenopausal FSD, and to improve the quality of sexual life of perimenopausal women.

Research objectives

To investigate the mediating effect of depressive mood and body image on menopausal symptoms and sexual function in perimenopausal women.

Research methods

Analysis of variance (ANOVA), Bonferroni method, rank-sum test, multivariate logistic regression, and Pearson correlation analysis.

Research results

The Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) and Body Image Scale (BIS) scores were higher in the FSD group than in the control group. Monthly income of < 2000 yuan, BIS score, and HAMD score were independent risk factors for FSD. The MRS scores were positively correlated with the BIS and HAMD scores and negatively correlated with the female sexual function index scores. Body image and depressive mood had partial mediating effects, accounting for 39.90% of the total effect.

Research conclusions

Depression and body image play mediating roles between menopausal symptoms and sexual function in perimenopausal women.

Research perspectives

This study shows that depression and body image play mediating roles between menopausal symptoms and sexual function in perimenopausal women, and reasonable countermeasures can be considered in clinic.