Attitudes to menopause and hormone replacement therapy among Asian and Caucasian women general practitioners

To look for any differences in attitudes to menopause and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) between Asian and Caucasian women standardised for educational background, socio-economic status and access to medical information.

Self administered postal questionnaire sent to 144 women doctors (general practitioners) in defined geographical areas.

The overall response rate was 61%. Both Asian and Caucasian women responded in a similar manner for most aspects. A high proportion of these women doctors (over 75%) would seek HRT at the climacteric. More Asian respondents reported a fear of breast cancer (P=0.001), and that a woman feels less of a woman after the menopause (P=0.02). More Caucasian respondents felt positively about the potential for HRT to enhance enjoyment of life (P=0.01).

The lack of major differences between the ethnic groups in our sample suggests that variations reported elsewhere may be due to lack of knowledge and/or differences in socio-economic status.