Research recommendations

Menopause-related research has generally focused on hormone therapy to alleviate postmenopausal health problems. Very little information is available regarding 1) the biological processes, particularly the mechanisms of ovarian follicular depletion, leading to menopause, and 2) the nature of the physiological and psychosocial changes during the pre- to postmenopausal transition. One of the pricipal goals of this NIH Workshop on Menopause was to generate a set of recommendations to guide research in this important area of women's health. The individual working groups, representing a wide variety of disciplines and interests, identified a large number of specific cross-c cutting scientific questions to be addressed.