Predicting Menopause

Posted on Jun 27, 2010

Flickr / katyhutch

Scientists believe that a simple blood test could in the future be able to predict exactly when a woman will start menopause, a development that would be invaluable in helping women make reproductive decisions. —JCL

CNN:

A simple doctor’s-office blood test may one day be able to predict when a woman will start menopause, possibly even in women in their 20s.

Pending validation in future studies, the test could help women make reproductive decisions, say the authors of a study that will be presented Monday at the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Rome.

“Women may want to know if they’re OK waiting to start a family till they’re 41,” says Dr. Jennifer Wu, M.D., an obstetrician/gynecologist at Lenox Hill Hospital, in New York City, who was not involved with the study. “If they know they’re going to start menopause at 45, they may not want to wait.”

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