• Posted June 17, 2026

Surgical Menopause Tied To Worse Sexual And Urinary Symptoms

WEDNESDAY, June 17, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Women tend to have worse sexual and urinary symptoms if they enter menopause because of surgery as opposed to naturally, a new study says.

Women with surgical menopause needed to pee more often, had painful urination and suffered sexual symptoms like dryness and reduced desire at a higher rate than women in natural menopause, researchers reported recently in the journal Menopause.

“Our findings emphasize that genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM) extends beyond vaginal dryness and constitutes a multidimensional syndrome involving urinary symptoms and sexual function,” concluded the research team led by Dr. Samican Ozmen of Torbali State Hospital in Turkey.

For the study, researchers compared 218 women with surgical menopause against 204 women in natural menopause.

Surgical menopause occurs when both ovaries are removed, causing an immediate and severe drop in hormone levels, researchers said in background notes.

GSM is a clinical condition caused by declining levels of estrogen, which prompts changes in women’s urinary tracts and genitals. Between 27% and 84% of women in menopause experience GSM, researchers said.

Results showed that women with surgical menopause had higher total GSM symptom scores.

“These women may benefit from earlier and more proactive initiation of GSM-targeted therapies,” researchers wrote.

These treatments include hormone therapy and vaginal lubricants or moisturizers, according to Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. Women also are encouraged to avoid personal hygiene products that might irritate their genitals.

“This study showed that GSM symptoms and exam findings were worse in women who experienced menopause due to removal of both ovaries compared to those who underwent menopause naturally,” Dr. Stephanie Faubion, medical director for The Menopause Society, said in a news release.

“Given the prevalence of GSM in menopausal women, and that fact that it is undertreated, clinicians caring for midlife women should be more proactive in assessing for and managing GSM in general,” continued Faubion, who was not involved in the study. “In women with surgical menopause, this may be even more critical and should prompt early evaluation and treatment of symptoms.”

More information

Brigham and Women’s Hospital has more on genitourinary syndrome of menopause.

SOURCES: The Menopause Society, news release, June 10, 2026; Menopause, June 9, 2026