Evaluation of the effects of aromatherapy treatment on female subjects who are beginning to experience complaints associated with menopause using the KK scale method

Abstract

The menopausal period begins when the ovarian function begins to decrease and it ends when this function disappears completely. Generally, menopause is observed in females ranging from 45 to 55 years old, when menses completely ceases (menopause). The 10-year period comprising the 5-year premenopausal period and 5-year postmenopausal period are known as the menopausal period. Females at the beginning of the menopausal period tend to have indefinite complaints due to hormonal imbalance, and many of them are diagnosed with menopausal disorder based on examination results. The discomfort includes fatigue, frustration, insomnia, stiff shoulders, a feeling of being cold, headache, and many other symptoms. The symptoms are unstable, and many women may have several of them. It is difficult to make a clear diagnosis, as the causes of these serious complaints often cannot be identified. Various factors, such as environmental changes and stress, may be related to these complaints. The decline of the ovarian function with aging, mental/personality factors, environment, and external causes may be complicatedly involved in the onset of such indefinite complaints in women in the menopausal period. In this study, we provided body treatment with essential oil once a week for eight weeks to subjects who had begun to have a stiff neck and shoulders, a feeling of being cold, frustration, poor-quality sleep, and changes in their regular cycle several years ago, with the goal of evaluating changes in their QOL using the KK scale.