Later menopause onset linked to lower risk of frailty: review
Maintenance of oestrogen may be a key factor, researchers say, but evidence in the literature is limited
Later age at menopause is associated with a reduced risk of prevalent frailty, with the delay in hormonal changes thought to play a pivotal protective role, a new analysis shows.
Results from the first systematic review and meta-analysis of its kind suggest that for each one-year increase in age of menopause onset, there is a 2% lower risk of prevalent frailty.
“These findings enhance our understanding of pathophysiology of frailty development and, possibly, sex disparity of frailty,” the Japanese-led researchers say.
Writing in Maturitas, the investigators reported results from their meta-analysis of four studies — from the UK, US, Canada and South Korea — that involved a total of nearly 26,000 women (mean age range 48-50).
