THE MENOPAUSE IN WESTERN MEDICINE "Menopause" indicates the complete and permanent cessation of menstruation: an interval of 6-12 months is usually necessary to establish the diagnosis. "Climacteric" indicates the phase in a woman’s life during which she makes the transition from a reproductive to a non-reproductive stage: this transition is a period of declining ovarian function which usually spans 2-5 years around the menopause. Thus, when we refer to the discomfort and symptoms appearing during these years, it would be more appropriate to call them climacteric syndrome rather than menopausal syndrome . Menopause usually occurs between the ages of 48 and 55 and the median age in industrialized countries is about 51. The very first chapter of the "Su Wen" describes the 7-year cycles of women, according to which menopause occurs at 49 (7x7): this is not far from the above-mentioned median age of 51. Furthermore, data analyses indicate that the menopausal ...