Role of Phytoestrogen in Menopausal Women With Depressive Symptoms: A Consecutive Case Series Study

Introduction During menopause, healthy women experience a diverse aggregate of clinical manifestations and symptoms that relate to hormonal and aging changes. These alterations are strictly associated with psychological disorders, mainly depression. Estrogen treatment may be effective for these mood variations caused by menopause. Aim To demonstrate the impact of phytoestrogen treatment in menopausal women with depressive symptoms. Methods The study is a consecutive case series study, with a six-month follow-up. It was conducted in a private consultant endocrinologist clinic in Trikala, Greece. A total of 108 eligible participants aged from 45 and above experiencing depressive symptoms were included. The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) questionnaire for depressive symptoms was measured at three time points (t=0, t=3 months, t=6 months) and the means were analyzed and compared to each other. Results The overall mean BDI-II scores reveal that depressive symptoms constantly and gradually decreased over time, with the numbers of postmenopausal women experiencing minimal or mild depression and moderate depression, as tested at baseline and study completion (before and after phytoestrogen use), being inversely proportional. Conclusion Phytoestrogen administration to menopausal women is indicated to reduce depression symptoms. More research in the area is needed to reach definite conclusions.