Surgical menopause

Surgical menopause can be the consequence either of a non-conservative treatment of gynecologic tumors, or of a prophylactic salpingo-oophorectomy performed at premenopausal age or at the termination of childbearing. It produces remarkable consequences on female organism such as: loss of reproductive function, endocrine and metabolic impairment and, sometimes, psychological discomfort. In the recent years, however, thanks to the expanding indications for conservative surgery in gynecologic oncology and the efficacy of estrogen replacing therapy, the incidence as well as the morbidity of surgical menopause have been considerably reduced. Indications, therapeutic options and preventive measures in the field of surgical menopause will be briefly discussed.