A new study finds that medical research on gynecology neglects those who reach or pass menopause.
According to a study conducted by Tel Aviv University sociologist Neta Avnon, less than 4 percent of global scientific research publications in obstetrics and gynecology are devoted to menopause and beyond.
Avnon said this shows that medical research is “neglecting” women’s health beyond their childbearing years.
She noted that while menopause is a major event at some point in the lives of half of the world’s population, it has been neglected in research. And the new Israeli study suggests that this means that older women are not benefiting from medical advances as they should.
In her interview with the newspaperTimes of Israel“It is time for a change,” Avnon said. “Nearly a quarter of the world’s population is now in or following menopause. It’s too bad that gynecologists have so little research devoted to this population.”
In her research published in the journalNature Reviews UralologyIn September, Avnon Medical conducted a survey of journals that publish peer-reviewed studies on obstetrics and gynecology and found that out of 83 studies, only three — an average of just 4 percent — dealt with women’s health before and following childbearing age, including menopause. .
Avnon believes the problem is broader than neglecting menopause.
She said that scientists are keen to research topics related to reproduction and childbirth at the expense of the health of other women.
She added, “Women can suffer from many medical problems that have absolutely nothing to do with their reproductive functions, such as nerve and muscle problems, problems related to their digestive system close to their genitals, unlike men, and many other pains and diseases.”
She believes that “the time has come for a woman-centered gynecology”, which means an approach that takes a broader view of women’s health, particularly with regard to women’s sexuality, menopause and health complaints affecting the reproductive organs.
“To effect real change, physicians must be trained to consider women’s rights, health and sexuality the main focus of women’s medicine,” she said.
