Im Eun-Ok, Chang Sun Ju, Chee Eunice, Chee Wonshik
School of Nursing, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
College of Nursing, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea.
Women Health. 2019 Feb;59(2):196-212. doi: 10.1080/03630242.2018.1450321. Epub 2018 Jul 24.
The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationships of multiple factors to menopausal symptoms in different racial/ethnic groups of midlife women. This secondary analysis was conducted with the data from 980 midlife women that were collected from 2005 to 2013 using the Midlife Women's Symptom Index. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. The model had the highest fit indices for non-Hispanic (NH) White midlife women, and prominent racial/ethnic differences were observed in the relationships of multiple factors to menopausal symptoms. In all racial/ethnic groups (except in Hispanic women), perceived health status was significantly positively associated with menopausal symptoms ( = -0.149 for NH African-American; = -0.207 for NH Asians; = -0.162 for NH Whites). Body mass index was significantly positively associated with menopausal symptoms only in NH Asians ( = 0.118) and Hispanics ( = 0.210). The racial/ethnic differences in the relationships of multiple factors to menopausal symptoms could have resulted from the different cultural contexts in which women undergo during their menopausal transitions. Further cultural studies on the associations of racial/ethnic-specific factors with menopausal symptoms would help in understanding possible causes for racial/ethnic differences in the factors significantly associated with menopausal symptoms.
本研究的目的是探讨多种因素与不同种族/族裔中年女性更年期症状之间的关系。这项二次分析使用中年女性症状指数，对2005年至2013年收集的980名中年女性的数据进行。采用结构方程模型对数据进行分析。该模型对非西班牙裔（NH）白人中年女性的拟合指数最高，并且在多种因素与更年期症状的关系中观察到了显著的种族/族裔差异。在所有种族/族裔群体中（西班牙裔女性除外），感知健康状况与更年期症状显著正相关（NH非裔美国人为=-0.149；NH亚洲人为=-0.207；NH白人为=-0.162）。体重指数仅在NH亚洲人（=0.118）和西班牙裔（=0.210）中与更年期症状显著正相关。多种因素与更年期症状关系中的种族/族裔差异可能源于女性在更年期过渡期间所处的不同文化背景。进一步开展关于种族/族裔特定因素与更年期症状关联的文化研究，将有助于理解与更年期症状显著相关的因素中种族/族裔差异的可能原因。
