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Menopause
Menopause Is a stage of the human female reproductive cycle that occurs as the ovaries stop producing estrogen, causing the reproductive system to gradually shut down. As the body adapts to the changing levels of natural hormones, vasomotor symptoms such as hot flashes and palpitations, psychological symptoms such as increased depression, anxiety, irritability, mood swings and lack of concentration, and atrophic symptoms such as vaginal drynes.
RELATED TERMS--------------------------------------
Female
The traditional definition of female was "an individual of the sex that bears young" or "that produces ova or eggs". However, things are not so simple today. Female can be defined by physical appearance, by chromosome constitution (see Female chromosome complement), or by gender identification. Female chromosome complement: The large majority of females have a 46, XX chromosome complement (46 chromosomes including two X chromosomes). A minority of females have other chromosome constitutions such as 45,X (45 chromosomes including only one X chromosome) and 47,XXX (47 chromosomes including three X chromosomes).
Ovaries
The paired female sex glands in the pelvis, located one on each side of the uterus. The ovaries produce eggs and hormones including estrogen, progesterone, and androgens.
Estrogen
A hormone produced in the ovaries that works with progesterone to, among other things, regulate the reproductive cycle.
Natural
Not human-induced or manmade.
Hormones
Biological compounds that communicate information at a distance. Hormones require specific receptors to begin their biological action and use second messengers to initiate the cellular process that uses that information.
Psychological
Pertaining to mental life as manifested through language and behavior.
Depression
A mental state of depressed mood characterized by feelings of sadness, despair and discouragement. Depression ranges from normal feelings of the blues through dysthymia to major depression. It in many ways resembles the grief and mourning that follow bereavement, there are often feelings of low self esteem, guilt and self reproach, withdrawal from interpersonal contact and physical symptoms such as eating and sleep disturbances.
Anxiety
A psychological and/or biological response to stress. Feelings of anxiety involve discomforting apprehension or concern, which may include symptoms such as cognitive difficulties, hypersensitivity, dizziness, muscular weakness, breathing difficulties, irregular heart beat, sweating, and sensations of fear. Typically, anxiety is a natural and healthy response to life experiences. However, exaggerated or chronic anxiety often indicates an anxiety disorder. Anxiety can be produced by external stress (exogenous anxiety) or internal stress (endogenous anxiety).
Mood
A pervasive and sustained emotion that colors the perception of the world. Common examples of mood include depression, elation, anger, and anxiety. In contrast to affect, which refers to more fluctuating changes in emotional "weather," mood refers to a more pervasive and sustained emotional "climate." Types of mood include: dysphoric, elevated, euthymic, expansive, irritable.
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Menopur
Menopur is a prescription or over-the-counter drug which is (or once was) approved in the United States and possibly in other countries. Active ingredient(s): menotropins fsh;lh.
Menorah Medical Center
Menorah Medical Center is a hospital in Overland Park, Kansas (USA).
Menorrhagia
Heavy bleeding during menstruation.
Menorrhea
Flow of blood from the uterus; occurs at roughly monthly intervals during a woman's reproductive years.
Menostar
Menostar is a prescription or over-the-counter drug which is (or once was) approved in the United States and possibly in other countries. Active ingredient(s): estradiol.
Menotropins
Menotropins is a prescription or over-the-counter drug which is (or once was) approved in the United States and possibly in other countries. Active ingredient(s): menotropins fsh;lh.
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Mortality Doubling Time
The amount of time required for the death rate to double after reaching adulthood.
Macronutrient
Any food that contains calories and, therefore, can generate hormonal responses. Protein, carbohydrate, and fat are macronutrients.
Mumps
Mumps is a viral disease characterised by fever, headache, and inflammation of the salivary glands. It may lead to complications such as meningitis.
Meningitis
An infectious disease that strikes membranes covering the brain and spinal cord (meninges). It can be caused by bacteria, viruses, or fungi. It can follow another infection somewhere else in the body, often ears or sinuses. If bacterial meningitis is not treated within hours, it can lead to death or permanent brain injury.
Meninges
Membranes which surround and protect the brain and spinal cord; anatomically there are 3 meninges: the pia mater, which adheres to the brain and the spinal cord, the dura mater, which adheres to the bone and the arachnoid between these two membranes.
Menopause
Migraine
A vascular headache associated with changes in the size of the arteries within and outside of the brain. A migraine begins when hyperactive nerve cells send out impulses to the blood vessels, causing constriction, followed by the dilation of these vessels and the release of prostaglandins, serotonin, and other inflammatory substances that cause the pulsation to be painful. Migraine is a genetic disorder that is inherited. A migraine causes mild to severe pain and lasts from 4 hours up to a week. Migraines usually occur 2 to 4 times per month.
Macular degeneration
Damage or breakdown of the macula, which is an area in the back of the eye that controls central vision. It may be caused by injury or aging; and while it does not progress to total blindness, patients with macular degeneration require special optical aids to enlarge distant and near objects.
Monocular vision
A condition in which one eye is blind, or in which one eye refuses to register images in co-ordination with the better eye.
Multiple sclerosis
An auto-immune disease of the central nervous system, mainly affecting young adults, whose origin is unknown. It damages nerve fiber insulation (myelin) in a random and patchy manner, causing a wide range of neurological defects. It is characterized clinically by symptoms that typically abate spontaneously in the early years of the disease but often get gradually worse in later years.
Muscular dystrophy
An inherited condition that is due to a gene on the X chromosome. It is therefore called a sex-linked gene. It results in the inability to produce a vital muscle chemical resulting in muscle wastage, stumbling, then inability to walk and death by the age of about 20.
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