A simple blood test has been developed by researchers in Iran to predict the age of menopause. The onset of menopause varies in different women and being able to predict the age of menopause can be a very useful tool, especially to women who plan to have a family later in life.
This test measures a hormone called AMH which is found in the ovaries and which controls the follicles from which the egg develops and it can be carried out even in women as young as 20 years old in order to predict to within a few months the age of menopause.
The researchers, carried out a study led by Dr Fahimeh Ramezani Tehrani in order to prove that this test could predict the age of the onset of menopause.
In the study 266 women aged between 20 and 49 were monitored through blood samples and physical examinations at three-yearly intervals over a 12-year period.
Using a mathematical model the researchers developed, their AMH results were used to calculate the estimated age at which they were likely to reach menopause.
63 of the 266 women reached the menopause during this study and the age of menopause predicted correlated with the actual age of menopause to within 4 months.
Scientists were able to use this data to calculate in turn, when a woman's eggs were likely to be used up and hence the age at which her fertility would drop.
Dr Tehrani said that the test would enable doctors to make a realistic assesment of a woman's reproductive status long before she actually gets to the menopause.
This would enable a woman to plan her pregnancies accordingly, although doctors warned that the eggs are just one factor affecting a woman's fertilty.
So even though a woman may not be able to stave off the menopause, at least knowing the age of menopause will allow her to prepare herself physically and emotionally and take more control over her life and body.