Exercise and Quality of Life in Women with Menopausal Symptoms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Abstract

Menopausal symptoms are associated with deterioration in physical, mental, and sexual health, lowering women’s quality of life (QoL). Our study objective is to examine the effect of exercise on QoL in women with menopausal symptoms. After initially identifying 1306 studies published on PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane Library before June 2020, two researchers independently selected nine randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in which any type of exercise was compared with no active treatment. We assessed the risk of bias in the included studies using the Cochrane risk-of-bias 2.0 tool for RCTs and computed the converged standardized mean difference with a 95% confidence interval. We found evidences for the positive effects of exercise on physical and psychological QoL scores in women with menopausal symptoms. However, there was no evidence for the effects of exercise on general, social, and menopause-specific QoL scores. The most common interventions for women with menopausal and urinary symptoms were yoga and pelvic floor muscle training (PFMT), respectively. In our meta-analyses, while yoga significantly improved physical QoL, its effects on general, psychological, sexual, and vasomotor symptoms QoL scores as well as the effect of PFMT on general QoL were not significant. Our findings suggest that well-designed studies are needed to confirm the effect of exercise on QoL in women with menopausal symptoms.

Effectiveness of Pelvic Floor Muscle Training and Yoga on the Quality of Life in Perimenopausal Women with Urinary Incontinence

“…A systematic review by Nguyen et al (2020) showed different results from previous studies. Nguyen et al (2020) affirmed that there was no convincing relationship between yoga and the QOL in women with menopausal symptoms. However, there were positive effects of yoga on physical complaints, psychological, sexual, and vasomotor with many different effects.…”

“…The previous research by Jayabarthi and Judie (2014) also found that yoga interventions in menopausal women were effective in improving the quality of life in physical, psychological, social, and environmental domains (Jayabharathi & Judie, 2014). A systematic review by Nguyen et al (2020) showed different results from previous studies. Nguyen et al (2020) affirmed that there was no convincing relationship between yoga and the QOL in women with menopausal symptoms.…”

“…PFMT could be done at any time without providing a specific time; it could be done in a short time. So far, both interventions give good results against urinary incontinence primarily to improve the QOL in perimenopausal women, although other researchers have found different results (Haakstad et al, 2020;Nguyen et al, 2020). To date, little research has been conducted on the effectiveness of PFMT and yoga on the QOL.…”

The Effect of Physical Exercise on Depression in Menopausal Women

“…Copyright © 2021, authors, e-ISSN : 2580-071X , p-ISSN : 2085-6180 Menopausal women who do a physical exercise show lower depression because of social interaction and mental distraction when doing physical exercise (Galas et al, 2019;Nguyen et al, 2020). These two things make menopausal women still feel comfortable and psychologically advantageous (Galas et al, 2019;National Institute of Mental Health, 2010;Nguyen et al, 2020). In addition, participation during physical exercise makes them more relaxed (Bernard et al, 2015;Fouad et al, 2021;Galas et al, 2019).…”

Evidence-Based Use of Yoga in the Management of Menopausal Symptoms

“…Çalışmada yoganın fiziksel yaşam kalitesini önemli ölçüde iyileştirdiği sonucuna varılmıştır. 22 (KD.1a)…”