Premature natural menopause and cognitive function among older women in Indonesia

Women's fertility and allostatic load in the post-reproductive years: An analysis of the Indonesian Family Life Survey

We know little about the effects of the reproductive health burden in contexts where unsafe abortions, miscarriages, stillbirths, and low-quality maternal care are common. The aim of this study is to investigate the use of allostatic load to understand the impact of reproductive histories on later-life health. We applied path models to the Indonesian Family Life Survey with a sample of 2,001 women aged 40+. Although number of children was not associated with allostatic load, pregnancies not ending in live birth and parenthood before age 18 were both negatively associated with health. We also identified clear cohort and educational effects and a possible rural advantage. Our contribution is twofold: we highlight the importance of reproductive histories beyond live births on women's later-life health in a context of increasing population ageing, and we demonstrate the applicability of using allostatic load to measure health outside the Global North.

Follicular development during hormone replacement therapy in patients with premature ovarian insufficiency

PURPOSE

To provide information about the relationship between follow-up period and follicular development in patients with infertility due to premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) who are undergoing hormone replacement therapy (HRT). It is necessary to detect follicle development for artificial insemination or in vitro fertilization.

METHODS

This retrospective cohort study was conducted at a university hospital in Tokyo, Japan, from April 2014 to February 2019 in 20 patients [follicular development group, 11 women (55%); non-follicular development group, 9 women (45%)] with POI; their follicular development was followed up weekly. Background characteristics, including age, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and anti-Mullerian hormone levels (AMH), the period from the last spontaneous menstruation to hormone replacement therapy initiation, and follow-up period during HRT were investigated. The period without follicular development was tabulated, and the subsequent cumulative follicular development detection rate was calculated.

RESULTS

At least 1-year follow-up, the cumulative follicular development rate was 70%; follicular development was observed with a probability of 49.1% at 3 months, 33.4% at 6 months, and 8.3% at 12 months in the follow-up period.

CONCLUSIONS

The results show that the longer the non-follicle development period, the lower the probability of subsequent follicular development in patients with POI during HRT.