[Knowledge and beliefs of the effect of menopause and estrogenic therapy on health. Study in women attending the Barros Luco-Trudeau Hospital].

The benefits of hormonal replacement therapy are widely known. In spite of this, the proportion of women under treatment is low. The study aims to evaluate the amount of knowledge that patients have, about menopause, and how it influences compliance with therapy. In our study, 494 women attending the outpatient's clinic of Hospital Barros Luco-Trudeau were interviewed; 93.5% considered that menopause has adverse effects upon health; 87.9% believes that it produces emotional disturbances; 55.1% bone-related and 40.9% cardiac problems. Sixty six point eight percent of the consulted women know that there is a treatment for menopause. Half of the women interviewed had consulted the physician specifically for this reason; however, only one third are or were under treatment. Obesity, hirsutism and cancer are considered to be the main secondary effects to treatment. Patients who have not received hormone therapy have a much lower degree of knowledge about menopause than the treated ones, and amongst the latter, those who abandon treatment have less information than the ones that remain under treatment. As a conclusion, we may say that our patients have information about menopause and also that they attend to the physician's office for this reason. The knowledge about the matter and related beliefs influence both adherence to and compliance with therapy.