“No menstruation and fatigue” Women are experiencing menopause… Could it be misdiagnosed as ‘this type of disease’?

Common symptoms related to menopause, such as facial flushing, fatigue, and sweating, are well known, but the symptoms and severity vary greatly from person to person, sometimes causing confusion.

Dr Donald Grant, a British general practitioner, said menopause “can be tricky to diagnose” and explained: “If diagnosis is delayed, symptoms can worsen and quality of life can worsen as people do not get the support they need during this difficult time.” In celebration of World Menopause Day, Dr. Grant has summarized some of the diseases that can cause menopause to be misdiagnosed.

chronic fatigue syndrome = Chronic fatigue syndrome is a disease in which extreme fatigue can affect work or social life. According to the standards of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), chronic fatigue syndrome is a condition in which the fatigue does not recover even after sufficient rest and extreme fatigue that persists for more than 6 months to the extent that it is impossible to properly perform more than half of daily activities without any special cause. says that

Joint pain, brain fog (feeling like there is fog in your head), and difficulty resting are symptoms shared by chronic fatigue syndrome patients and postmenopausal women. To distinguish between the two diseases, tests through hormone level testing and menstrual history evaluation are necessary.

polycystic ovary syndrome = Polycystic ovary syndrome is easily confused with menopause symptoms because it presents various hormone-related symptoms that occur during menopause, such as irregular menstruation, facial flushing, and fluctuations in hormone levels.

heart disease = Dr. Grant pointed out that menopause is sometimes mistaken for heart disease. The risk of heart disease increases with age, which means that women may be exposed to the risk of heart disease and menopause at a similar time, increasing the likelihood of misdiagnosis. Common symptoms of both diseases include facial flushing, fatigue, and shortness of breath. However, heart disease causes symptoms that are different from menopause, such as chest pain or heart attack symptoms.

thyroid disease = Hypothyroidism and other similar diseases cause symptoms such as weight changes, mood changes, and irregular menstruation, which are also similar to menopause symptoms. Both diseases are caused by hormonal changes. In order to distinguish between the two diseases, you must undergo a test to see if there are any changes in any hormones.