Association of oral contraceptives and tubal ligation with risk of early natural menopause

Women's health, hormonal balance, and personal autonomy

Hormone-based contraception disrupts hormonal balance, creating artificial states of anovulation and threatening women's health. We reviewed its main adverse effects and mechanisms on accelerated ovarian aging, mental health (emotional disruptions, depression, and suicide), sexuality (reduced libido), cardiovascular (brain stroke, myocardial infarction, hypertension, and thrombosis), and oncological (breast, cervical, and endometrial cancers). Other "collateral damage" includes negative effects on communication, scientific mistrust, poor physician-patient relationships, increased patient burden, economic drain on the healthcare system, and environmental pollution. Hormone-sensitive tumors present a dilemma owing to their potential dual effects: preventing some cancers vs. higher risk for others remains controversial, with denial or dismissal as non-relevant adverse effects, information avoidance, and modification of scientific criteria. This lack of clinical assessment poses challenges to women's health and their right to autonomy. Overcoming these challenges requires an anthropological integration of sexuality, as the focus on genital bodily union alone fails to encompass the intimate relational expression of individuals, complete sexual satisfaction, and the intertwined feelings of trust, safety, tenderness, and endorsement of women's femininity.

Association of lifetime lactation and age at natural menopause: a prospective cohort study

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to examine the association between duration of lifetime lactation and age at natural menopause.

METHODS

In this prospective cohort study, we analyzed parous premenopausal women in the multiethnic Study of Women's Health Across the Nation who were followed approximately annually for 10 years (1995-2008). Lifetime lactation was defined as the duration of breastfeeding across all births in months. Age at natural menopause was defined as age in years after 12 consecutive months of amenorrhea after the final menstrual period for no other reported cause. We used Cox proportional hazard models to analyze time to natural menopause with age as the underlying time scale. Multivariable models controlled for education, race/ethnicity, parity, smoking, body mass index, and oral contraceptive use.

RESULTS

Among 2,377 women, 52.6% experienced natural menopause during follow-up and reported a valid final menstrual period date. The small, crude association between lifetime lactation up to 24 months and later age at natural menopause attenuated to nonsignificance in adjusted models (6 months: adjusted hazard ratio [AHR], 0.96; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.87-1.06; 12 months: AHR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.82-1.11; 18 months: AHR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.82-1.13; 24 months: AHR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.84-1.16).

CONCLUSIONS

Duration of lifetime lactation was not associated with age at natural menopause after controlling for sociodemographic characteristics.

Expanding Our Knowledge of Menstrual Irregularities Reported by Females With Tuberous Sclerosis Complex

Purpose

The purpose of our study is to expand the knowledge regarding intrinsic reproductive dysfunction in females with TSC and to explore the impact of mTOR inhibitors (mTORi) on menstrual irregularity in the Tuberous Sclerosis Complex (TSC) community.

Methods

An electronic survey composed of author-designed questions set out to evaluate reproductive history, presence of menstrual irregularities, mTORi use, as well as maternal reproductive history among females with TSC.

Results

Of the 68 responses from females with TSC regarding age of menarche, the average age was 12.3 years. 56.5% (n = 48) of respondents reported irregular menstrual cycles and noted a total of 102 menstrual irregularities. There was a cohort of 35 women with a reported history of mTORi use. Of these women, 68.6% (n = 24) reported irregular menstrual cycles after taking mTORi. In comparison, among the females with no history of mTORi use (n = 50) only 48% reported irregular menstrual cycles (n = 24).

Conclusions

Our data expands the knowledge regarding intrinsic menstrual dysregulation present in women with TSC, demonstrates a rate of menstrual irregularities among females taking mTORi, and identifies a tendency toward early menarche that may be a previously unrecognized feature of TSC.

The relation of number of childbirths with age at natural menopause: a population study of 310 147 women in Norway

STUDY QUESTION

Does age at natural menopause increase with increasing of number of childbirths?

SUMMARY ANSWER

Age at menopause increased with increasing number of childbirths up to three childbirths; however, we found no further increase in age at menopause beyond three childbirths.

WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY

Pregnancies interrupt ovulation, and a high number of pregnancies have therefore been assumed to delay menopause. Previous studies have had insufficient statistical power to study women with a high number of childbirths. Thus, the shape of the association of number of childbirths with age at menopause remains unknown.

STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION

A retrospective population study of 310 147 women in Norway who were 50-69 years old at data collection.

PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS

The data were obtained by two self-administered questionnaires completed by women attending BreastScreen Norway, a population-based screening program for breast cancer. The associations of number of childbirths with age at menopause were estimated as hazard ratios by applying Cox proportional hazard models, adjusting for the woman's year of birth, cigarette smoking, educational level, country of birth, oral contraceptive use and body mass index.

MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE

Women with three childbirths had the highest mean age at menopause (51.36 years; 95% CI: 51.33-51.40 years), and women with no childbirths had the lowest (50.55 years; 95% CI: 50.48-50.62 years). Thus, women with no childbirths had higher hazard ratio of reaching menopause compared to women with three childbirths (reference group) (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.24; 95% CI: 1.22-1.27). Beyond three childbirths, we estimated no further increase in age at menopause. These findings were confirmed in sub-analyses among (i) women who had never used hormonal intrauterine device and/or systemic menopausal hormonal therapy; (ii) women who were born before 1950 and (iii) women who were born in 1950 or after.

LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION

Information about age at menopause was based on self-reports.

WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS

If pregnancies truly delay menopause, one would expect that women with the highest number of childbirths had the highest age at menopause. Our results question the assumption that interrupted ovulation during pregnancy delays menopause.

STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S)

This work was supported by the South-Eastern Norway Regional Health Authority [2016112 to M.S.G.] and by the Norwegian Cancer Society [6863294-2015 to E.K.B.]. The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

N/A.

Association Between Laparoscopically Confirmed Endometriosis and Risk of Early Natural Menopause

IMPORTANCE

Early natural menopause (ENM) has been associated with reduced reproductive span, cardiovascular disease risk, and early mortality. The potential adverse implications of endometrioma surgery for ovarian reserve are known, yet the association of endometriosis with menopausal timing remains understudied.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the association between endometriosis and risk for ENM.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

This large, population-based cohort study analyzed data from the Nurses' Health Study II cohort questionnaires from the 1989 to 2015 questionnaire cycles. The sample included premenopausal women aged 25 to 42 years at baseline or enrollment in 1989. Cumulative follow-up rate was greater than 90%, and participants continued follow-up until the onset of ENM, age 45 years, hysterectomy, oophorectomy, cancer diagnosis, death, loss to follow-up, or end of follow-up in May 2017, whichever occurred first. Data analyses were conducted from October 26, 2020, to April 27, 2021.

EXPOSURES

Endometriosis diagnosis status was queried in the biennial questionnaires, with participants reporting physician diagnosis and whether the diagnosis was laparoscopically confirmed.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

Natural menopause before age 45 years. Menopause status was assessed every 2 years.

RESULTS

The study included 106 633 premenopausal women with a mean (SD) age of 34.8 (4.3) years at baseline, of whom 3921 reported a laparoscopically confirmed endometriosis diagnosis. During 1 508 462 person-years of follow-up, 6640 participants reported being diagnosed with endometriosis, 99 993 never reported endometriosis, and 2542 reported experiencing ENM. In the age- and calendar time-adjusted model, laparoscopically confirmed endometriosis was associated with a 50% greater risk for ENM (hazard ratio [HR], 1.51; 95% CI, 1.30-1.74). A similar risk was observed after adjusting for race and ethnicity and time-varying anthropometric and behavioral factors (HR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.26-1.69). With additional adjustment for reproductive factors, the HR of ENM was attenuated but significant (HR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.10-1.48). A greater risk of ENM was observed among women who were nulliparous after stratifying by parity (nulliparous vs parous: HR, 1.46 [95% CI, 1.15-1.86] vs 1.14 [95% CI, 0.94-1.39]; P for heterogeneity = .05) or who never used oral contraceptives when stratifying by oral contraceptive use (never vs ever: HR, 2.03 [95% CI, 1.34-3.06] vs 1.20 [95% CI, 1.02-1.42]; P for heterogeneity = .02). No significant differences were observed in the association between endometriosis and ENM when stratifying by body mass index (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared; <25 vs ≥25: HR, 1.20 [95% CI, 0.99-1.45] vs 1.43 [95% CI, 1.11-1.83; P for heterogeneity = .34), cigarette smoking status (never vs ever: HR, 1.36 [95% CI, 1.13-1.65] vs 1.11 [95% CI, 0.87-1.42]; P for heterogeneity = .57), or history of infertility attributed to ovulatory disorder (no vs yes: HR, 1.28 [95% CI, 1.08-1.51] vs 1.28 [95% CI, 0.90-1.82]; P for heterogeneity = .86).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

This cohort study found a risk for ENM in women with laparoscopically confirmed endometriosis. These women compared with those without endometriosis may be at a higher risk for shortened reproductive duration, particularly those who were nulliparous or never used oral contraceptives.

Association of oral contraceptives and tubal ligation with antimüllerian hormone

OBJECTIVE

Oral contraceptives (OCs) and tubal ligation are commonly used methods of contraception that may impact ovarian function. Few studies have examined the association of these factors with antimüllerian hormone (AMH), a marker of ovarian aging.

METHODS

We examined the association of OC use and tubal ligation with AMH in the Nurses' Health Study II prospective cohort among a subset of 1,420 premenopausal participants who provided a blood sample in 1996-1999. History of OC use and tubal ligation were reported in 1989 and updated every 2 years until blood collection. We utilized generalized linear models to assess whether mean AMH levels varied by duration of and age at first use of OCs and history, age, and type of tubal ligation.

RESULTS

In multivariable models adjusted for smoking, reproductive events, and other lifestyle factors, we observed a significant, inverse association between duration of OC use and mean AMH levels (P for trend = 0.036). Compared to women without a tubal ligation, AMH levels were significantly lower when the procedure included a clip, ring, or band (1.04 ng/ml vs 1.72 ng/ml, P < 0.01). AMH levels were not associated with age at first use of OCs or age at tubal ligation.

CONCLUSIONS

Our analysis found an association between duration of OC use and certain types of tubal ligation with mean AMH levels. Further research is warranted to confirm the long-term association of these widely used contraceptive methods with AMH.