Herbal Medicine and Acupuncture for Menopausal Symptoms

Menopausal Symptoms affect women's mid-life quality of life and impose immense psychological and socioeconomic burden. Concerns about the safety of hormone therapy have led to demand for other options like Complementary Medicine; however, the efficacy and adverse effects of non hormonal therapies are unclear. This book presents a clinical trial comparing Chinese Herbal Medicine, Acupuncture and Hormone therapy on a population of Chinese Peri- and Post-menopausal women. The study was conducted in two university affiliated hospitals of the city of Beijing, China as the first author's PhD thesis. A combination of Chinese Herbal Medicine and acupuncture significantly decreased the menopausal symptoms. The effect was as well as the effect of hormone therapy and better than herbs alone. The study compares the treatment response in peri- and post-menopause women. It also suggests certain symptoms as the predictors to the treatment response. A cross sectional study on the factors affecting menopause experience was conducted besides the clinical trial.