Women are wasting their time and money buying menopause test kits at home, doctors have warned.
Urine tests are not predictive enough to tell if a woman is going through a phase in which her periods will stop, doctors have told the BBC.
The manufacturers told the station that the kits should never replace medical advice. Some companies sell approved menopause tests in the UK online and in stores, which can be bought without a prescription for around £ 10 for a pack of two.
The tests, which work in minutes, accurately measure levels of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), which helps control the menstrual cycle. But experts say it is not a reliable marker of menopause or perimenopause.
Dr Annice Mukherjee, a leading doctor of menopause and hormones in the Endocrinology Society, told the BBC that FSH urine tests were “another example of the exploitation of middle-aged women by the commercial industry”. of menopause, which have financial conflicts of interest “.
He accused companies of using misleading information that “FSH is sometimes a useful marker of menopause” and called perimenopause a “hormone roller coaster.”
“It simply came to our notice then [FSH] directly, “she said.” It’s not a reliable marker of perimenopause and can cause more confusion among women undergoing the test. At worst, misinterpretation of the results can be damaging. “
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (RCOG), along with other prominent women’s health experts, said the tests could be futile and potentially misleading.
An RCOG spokesman, gynecologist consultant Haitham Hamoda of King’s College Hospital, who chairs the British Menopause Society, said: or perimenopause. “
NHS guidelines also discourage FSH testing for people over the age of 45 with classic menopausal symptoms, such as suffering, because it adds nothing to the diagnosis.
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The maker of the SelfCheck menopause test says that while menopause cannot be defined with a single simple test, hormonal imbalance is the most important indicator. And a consistently high level of FSH may indicate that “the ovaries are not working” and “there is no egg production.”
“These kits bring the feeling of being in charge of your health by knowing your FSH levels and seeking medical help to combat them successfully,” he says.
The company’s director, Dr John Rees, told BBC News: “Whatever the outcome, users of self-tests, including the SelfCheck menopause test, are instructed to talk to their doctor before taking any action. about the result.
“The instructions provided with the tests are reviewed and agreed with the regulators prior to approval for use.
“Self-test kits are not meant to replace traditional healthcare pathways, but they can make people talk to their doctor about their health issues whether they have a positive or a negative result.”