Relationship between vestibular dysfunction and quality of life in climacteric women

The hormonal changes in climacteric women may affect the vestibular system; however, it is not clear in the literature whether the presence of vestibular dysfunction associated with climacteric is related to poorer quality of life. The study sample was composed of 374 women (40-65 years). Socioeconomic and demographic data, menopausal status, practice of physical exercises, presence or absence of vestibular dysfunction, hypertension and diabetes, anthropometric measurements and quality of life (using the Utian Quality of Life Scale - UQoL) were collected. Statistical analyses were performed using the Pearson test, Anova, T-test, and multiple regression considering a significance level of 5%. A significant relationship was found between vestibular dysfunction and health (p = 0.02) and emotional (p = 0.01) domains of the UQoL. In addition, physical activity, menopausal status, body mass index (BMI), waist-hip ratio (WHR), household income and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) mean also remained significantly related to quality of life. A relationship between vestibular dysfunction and quality of life for health and emotional domains in climacteric women was observed.