Association of Age at Menopause and Duration of Reproductive Period With Depression After Menopause

Importance

Estrogens have neuroprotective and antidepressive effects; however, associations between indices of reduced endogenous estrogens and risk for postmenopausal depression have not been systematically explored.

Objective

To investigate the association of age at menopause and the duration of the reproductive period with the risk for depression among postmenopausal women with naturally occurring menopause.

Data Sources

A search strategy for use of MEDLINE was developed (through January 1, 2015) using the key termsmenopause,climacteric,reproductive period,depression, andmood disorders. References of included studies and reviews were also screened; authors were contacted to maximize synthesized evidence.

Study Selection

A total of 12 323 articles, without language restriction, were screened by pairs of reviewers to identify observational studies related to the study hypothesis; 14 studies were eligible for meta-analysis.

Data Extraction and Synthesis

Pairs of reviewers independently extracted information on study design and type of analysis by participants’ characteristics and methods of depression ascertainment. Study quality was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale, and fixed- or random-effects models were implemented.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Pooled-effect estimates for depression, defined by psychiatric evaluation or validated instruments, by age at menopause and duration of the reproductive period.

Results

The 14 studies included in the meta-analysis represented 67 714 women. An inverse association (reported as odds ratio [OR]; 95% CI of 2-year increments) with depression in postmenopausal women was shown for increasing age at menopause (0.98; 0.96-0.99 [67 434 unique participants; 13 studies]) and duration of the reproductive period (0.98; 0.96-0.99 [54 715 unique participants; 5 studies]). Menopause at age 40 or more years compared with premature menopause was associated with a 50% decreased risk for depression (3033 unique participants; 4 studies). Pooling of studies examining severe depression showed a 5% decrease in risk of severe depression with increasing (2-year increment) age at menopause (52 736 unique participants; 3 studies); sensitivity analysis of studies controlling for past depression revealed similar results for age at menopause (0.98; 0.96-1.00 [48 894 unique participants; 3 studies). No heterogeneity or publication bias was evident in the main analyses.

Conclusions and Relevance

Longer exposure to endogenous estrogens, expressed as older age at menopause and longer reproductive period, is associated with a lower risk of depression in later life. Identifying women at higher risk for depression due to early menopause who could benefit from psychiatric intervention or estrogen-based therapies could be useful in the clinical setting.