Depressive Symptoms and Bio-psychosocial Problems among Postmenopausal Women of Udupi District, Karnataka, India
Published: January 1, 2019 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2019/38164.12455
Shwetha Nayak, V Binil, Soumya Christabel
1. MSc Nursing, Department of Mental Health Nursing, Manipal College of Nursing, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, India.
2. Assistant Professor, Department of Mental Health Nursing, Manipal College of Nursing, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka, India.
3. Assistant Professor, Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, Manipal College of Nursing, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal Karnataka, India.
Correspondence
Dr. V Binil,
Assistant Professor, Department of Mental Health Nursing, Manipal College of Nursing, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal-576104, India.
E-mail: vp.binil@manipal.edu
Introduction: Menopause is the transition period in women’s life. Though it is a normal phenomenon, it has challenging situations. Many women shift to menopause without facing psychiatric problems; however, there is evidence that 20% of them are experiencing depressive symptoms during this crucial period.
Aim: To identify the depressive symptoms and bio-psychosocial problems of postmenopausal women.
Materials and Methods: A descriptive survey was conducted in three Gram Panchayaths of Udupi district, Karnataka, India. Convenient sampling technique was used to select 290 postmenopausal women between 1-5-years of menopause. Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Self Report (IDS-SR) scale was used to assess the depressive symptoms and rating scale on bio-psychosocial problems of postmenopausal women was used to assess the bio-psychosocial problems. Descriptive (frequency and percentage) and inferential statistics (Fisher’s-exact test and one way ANOVA test) were used to analyse the data.
Results: The results showed that 20.7% of women had a mild level of depressive symptoms. Commonly reported bio-psychosocial problem were leg cramps (89.7%), joint and muscle pain (87.6%), backache (87.2%), hot flushes (85.2%), fatigue (79.3%), numbness in extremities (75.9%), night sweating (67.2%), sleep disturbance (66.5%), sexual problems (49.7%), forgetting (31%) and irritation (39.6%). It was also found that there was a significant association between depressive symptoms and age (p=0.001), number of living children (p=0.003), duration after attaining menopause (p=0.012) and age at menopause (p=0.001).
Conclusion: Menopause is one of the most significant events in women’s life. Hence, nurses working in public sector need to identify problems related to postmenopausal women and provide adequate health services.
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