M.Tech. (Homoeopathy) / The climacteric describes the ongoing changes and symptoms, of the phase or transition period that may last 15-20 years in a woman's lifecycle, when ovarian function and hormonal production declines. Menopause is the permanent cessation of the menses, identified retrospectively after one year without menses and occurs within this period of climacteric (Bernstein et al. 1996). The most common symptoms of climacteric include hot flushes, night sweats, sleep disturbances, nervousness, depressive moods, feelings of vertigo, inability to concentration, joint pain, headache and heart palpitations. The most commonly used allopathic medication to palliate these symptoms is hormone replacement therapy (HRT). There are adverse side effects and risks associated with this treatment and not all women feel better on HR.T (Stoppard, 2001). The aim of this research study was to determine the efficacy of the Homoeopathic complexes Dr Reckeweg RI0® and R20® (Homoeopathic complexes) in relieving the symptoms of the climacteric. The methodology and Ethics were accepted by Higher Degrees Committee and Academic Ethics Committee on the 25 August 2008 (Ethical clearance no: 40/08). Participants were recruited by advertisements (Appendix A) at the University of Johannesburg, in health food shops and in pharmacies. This was a double blind, placebo controlled study involving thirty-two participants who were divided into two matched groups based on the severity of the menopausal symptoms. Volunteers were selected . using the exclusion and inclusion criteria. Volunteers meeting the inclusion criteria completed the information and consent form (Appendix B), and a patient profile and case history (Appendix C) were taken. The participants were randomly allocated to an experimental or control group, and given sets of medication (Remedy A and B, 50ml bottles) to take for a period of eight weeks (Appendix D). The participants took 10 drops of Remedy A (R10® or placebo) in the morning and Remedy B (R20® or placebo) at night. The participants were requested to complete the abbreviated Kupperman Menopause Index (KMI) weekly. The abbreviated KMI (Appendix E) scores were added...

M.Tech. / Menopause refers to the natural cessation of the menstrual cycle at the end of the reproductive years, and is usually defined retrospectively after twelve consecutive months of amenorrhoea. Climacteric is the term used to describe the life period surrounding menopause. It begins with physiological changes that mark the transition between the reproductive and post-reproductive years (Lewis and Bernstein, 1996). The mean age of menopause is 51 years, with a normal range from 45 to 56 years (Chamberlain and Malvern, 1996). There are many symptoms associated with menopause, including hot flushes and night sweats, headaches, sleep difficulties, vaginal dryness and loss of libido, urinary problems, joint and muscle pains, depression, irritability, and poor memory and concentration. Long-term risks and effects include osteoporosis and coronary heart disease (MacGregor, 2000). The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of the homoeopathic similimum in the treatment of climacteric symptoms. The research study was advertised in local newspapers, pharmacies, and on the Doornfontein campus of the University of Johannesburg in order to recruit volunteers for the study. All volunteers were required to complete a Suitability Criteria Questionnaire. Following this, ten participants were selected who met the inclusion criteria. The study involved four homoeopathic consultations for each participant over a period of three months. During the first consultation a consent form was completed, the procedures of the research were explained to the participant, a full case history was taken, and a physical examination was performed. According to each participant’s individualized physical, mental and emotional symptoms ascertained from the case history, the researcher determined a suitable similimum remedy. A similimum remedy can be defined as the single remedy that fits the symptom picture (Digby, 1997). The abbreviated Kupperman Menopause Index was completed by each participant at the beginning of the treatment, and then at four-weekly intervals for the duration of the twelve week trial. The results were then transferred to the participants’ main Kupperman Menopause Index and compared, thus determining the effect of the homoeopathic similimum in treating climacteric symptoms.

M.Tech. / Menopause is defined as the physiological cessation of menses due to decreased ovarian function and is established when the menses have not occurred for a year, usually occurring at a median age of 50.8 years. The period around the menopause is a time of transition that can contribute to both emotional and physical symptoms. The purpose of the study was to determine the efficacy of the homoeopathically prepared remedy Lachesis in the treatment of the symptoms of the menopause in women whose symptoms match the symptom picture of Lachesis. Thirty female volunteers between the ages of sixty and sixty years were recruited from the Johannesburg and Potchefstroom areas. This was a single-blind study and the participants did not know if they were in the control or experimental group. The participants were required to complete an Abbreviated Kupperman Index on a weekly basis throughout the four week trial period. The Experimental group experienced a 58.27% overall decrease in average Kupperman score, compared to 28.65% of the Control group. The P-value of the total response of the trial is 0.2110, therefore there is not a significant statistical difference between the two groups over the total trial period. Although there was not a statistically significant difference for the total response between the two groups there was statistically significant differences between the two groups for the following individual symptoms: profuse sweating, depressive moods and the inability to concentrate.

M.Tech. (Homoeopathy) / Menopause is the natural or iatrogenic termination of menstrual periods as a result of decreasing ovarian function. Natural menopause begins when menstrual periods have been absent for one year (Beers et al., 2006). The Climacteric is the period which encompasses the transition from the reproductive state to the non-reproductive state. Menopause, therefore, is a specific event that takes place during the climacteric (Collins et al., 2010). The symptoms are usually treated conventionally with Hormonal Replacement Therapy (HRT), but a large number of adverse side-effects are associated with its use (Harvey and Champe., 2009). De Schepper (2001) states that the true Homoeopathic Similimum strengthens a person’s vital force which results in the improvement of disease symptoms. Barton (2008) states that it is very difficult to accurately find the Homoeopathic Similimum for each case; therefore, Grant Bentley and his team have worked to develop a system of analysis, to facilitate the identification of the Similimum for each case. The Grant Bentley Method requires photography of the face and analysis of the facial features necessary to ascertain the miasmatic category into which the participant falls (Barton, 2008). There is no research verifying the effectiveness of this method in the treatment of climacteric symptoms. The aim of the study is to evaluate the effect of the Homoeopathic Similimum, using the Grant Bentley-method, on Climacteric symptoms. The study was carried out in the form of case studies over a twelve week period. Eleven females, between the ages of forty and sixty-five years, who were experiencing climacteric symptoms and who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were recruited, using purposive sampling, by placing advertisements (Appendix A) in local newspapers, pharmacies and medical practices in the Vanderbijlpark area and at the Doornfontein Campus of the University of Johannesburg. The process of the study was explained to the participants and consent forms were signed (Appendix C and D). Participants, with the researcher’s help, completed a Suitability Criteria Questionnaire (Appendix B). During the first consultation the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) (Appendix E and F) was completed and evaluated (Appendix G). The Homoeopathic case studies took the form of one-on-one conversations in order to complete a Case Taking Form (Appendix I) and incorporated a relevant physical examination and a Grant Bentley Evaluation of each participant’s facial features from which their miasmatic categories were determined (Appendix H). The participant’s case information was examined in accordance with the principles of homoeopathic classical prescribing, based on the entirety of symptoms. From this process the similimum was determined and given according to homoeopathic principles...

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Menopausal symptoms, primarily hot flashes, are a pressing clinical problem for both naturally menopausal women and breast and ovarian cancer patients, with a high societal and personal cost. Hot flashes are poorly understood, and animal modeling has been scarce, which has substantially hindered the development of non-hormonal treatments. An emerging factor in the hot flash experience is the role of anxiety and stress-related stimuli, which have repeatedly been shown to influence the bother, frequency, and severity of hot flashes. Causal relationships are difficult to determine in a clinical setting, and the use of animal models offers the ability to elucidate causality and mechanisms. The first part of this work details the development and validation of novel animal models of hot flashes using clinically relevant triggers (i.e., compounds or stimuli that cause hot flashes in clinical settings), which also increase anxiety symptoms. These studies revealed that these triggers elicited strong (7-9 °C) and rapid hot flash-associated increases in tail skin temperature in rats. In a surgical ovariectomy rat model of menopause, which typically exhibit anxiety-like behavior, hot flash provocation revealed an ovariectomy-dependent vulnerability, which was attenuated by estrogen replacement in tested models. An examination of the neural circuitry in response to the most robust flushing compound revealed increased cellular activity in key thermoregulatory and emotionally relevant areas. The orexin neuropeptide system was hyperactive and presented as a novel target; pretreatment with selective and dual orexin receptor antagonists significantly diminished or eliminated, respectively, the response to a hot flash provocation in ovariectomized rats. The insertion/deletion polymorphism of the serotonin transporter has been linked to increased anxiety-associated traits in humans, and subsequent studies prolonged hot flashes in SERT+/- rats, which also caused hot flashes in highly symptomatic women. These studies indicate the orexin system may be a novel non-hormonal treatment target, and future studies will determine the therapeutic importance of orexin receptor antagonists for menopausal symptoms.