Memory functioning among midlife women: Observations from the Seattle Midlife Women's Health Study

Objective: As the number of midlife women increases, there is an increased interest in women's experiences of the perimenopause. Because of the eviden ce linking estrogen with cholinergic and serotonergic activity in the brain and with central nervous system development of dendritic arborization, and mixed evidence of estrogen use with incidence of Alzheimer's disease, the effects of the perimenopause on memory functioning are of interest. The pur pose of these analyses, part of the Seattle Midlife Women's Health Study, w as to describe changes in women's perceived memory functioning according to their perimenopausal group, age, perceived stress, health status, and mood . Design: Memory functioning was assessed with the Memory Functioning Questio nnaire as part of a questionnaire mailed to study participants annually. Pe rimenopausal group was assessed using Mitchell's rating schema. Results: Age was unrelated to any of the Memory Functioning Questionnaire i ndicators except for retrospective memory; younger women reported more memo ry problems than older women. Perimenopausal groups were unrelated to most memory functioning ratings with few exceptions. Memory functioning ratings of current memory compared with the past were worse for women who were in e arly and middle transition and for those who were using hormone therapy tha n for those who were in late transition and postmenopause. Women reported m ore current memory problems compared with 10 and 20 years ago and at age 18 . Health ratings were negatively correlated with memory functioning ratings , and depressed mood positively correlated with nearly every indicator of m emory functioning (frequency of memory problems, ratings of current memory, past memory, and memory change). Greater perceived stress levels were asso ciated with more memory problems. Conclusions: Perceived memory functioning seems more closely related to per ceived health, depressed mood, and perceived stress than to perimenopausal stage or age. Further work is needed to determine whether these ratings pro vided by the Seattle cohort will change over time as women age and as they make the transition to menopause and beyond. (Menopause 2000;7:257-265, (C) 2000, The North American Menopause Society.).