Browsing by Author "Karmacharya, Isha"
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Publication Menopausal Symptoms among Postmenopausal Women of a Selected Municipality: A Cross-sectional Survey(Nepal Medical Association, 2021) Sharma, Sitasma; Adhikari, Laxmi; Karmacharya, Isha; Kaphle, MaheshorAbstract: Introduction: Postmenopausal women experience various menopause-specific somatic, psychological, and urogenital symptoms which tend to affect their overall well-being. However, there is a scant focus on menopausal health problems of postmenopausal women in Nepal. The aim of the study was to find out the prevalence of menopausal symptoms among postmenopausal women of a Municipality. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in selected wards of Tokha Municipality of Kathmandu district among postmenopausal women aged 45-60 years from September to October 2019. Ethical approval was taken from the Ethical Review Board, Nepal Health Research Council (reference number 694). Random sampling was used as the sampling technique. Face-to-face interview was used for data collection while a semi-structured interview schedule including the Nepali version of Menopause Rating Scale was used as a tool for measuring menopausal symptoms. EpiData version 3.1 was used for data entry while data analysis was performed using Statistical Packages for the Social Sciences version 20. Results: Amongst the postmenopausal women, all 203 (100%) had menopausal symptoms with majority reporting milder symptoms as found in 143 (70.4%). The mean Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) score was obtained as 13.21±5.1. The most prevalent moderate and mild symptoms were vaginal dryness 94 (46.3%), and depressive mood 71 (35%) respectively while physical and mental exhaustion 175 (86.2%) was the most common in all forms. Over half 102 (50.2%) of the respondents were unaware of menopausal symptoms and almost three-fifth 121 (59.6%) reported menopause related symptoms affected their daily work activities. Conclusions: The majority of postmenopausal women in this study had milder menopausal symptoms, which parallels findings from other national studies.Publication Socioeconomic, Behavioural, and Health-related Characteristics of Older Adults(Nepal Health Research Council, 2024) Suvedi, Bal Krishna; Karmacharya, Isha; Karkee, Shiba Bahadur; Myia, Salau Din; Ghimire, Saruna; Karki, Kshitij; Singh, Devendra Raj; Paudel, Shishir; Marasine, Nirmal Raj; Pandey, Saloni; Adhikari, Raksha; Kafle, Bhawana; Shrestha, NaveenBackground: The global aging population is growing rapidly, and Nepal is no exception. This increase is driven by changes in socioeconomic conditions, health behaviours, and advancements in the health system. In Nepal, almost a quarter of the national population are older adults (≥45 years), whose health status is rarely elaborated. This study was carried out to assess the socioeconomic, behavioural, and health-related characteristics of older adults in Nepal. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 4,179 randomly selected older adults residing in Bagmati Province from July 2022 to June 2023, via a multi-stage sampling technique. A semi-structured questionnaire including Geriatric Depression Scale, Activity of Daily Living, and Instrumental Activity of Daily Living along with sociodemographic and health profiles were used for the data collection through face-to-face interviews. The data were described in frequency and percentage across the local levels (urban/rural) and gender. Chi-square tests were done for bivariate analyses. Results: The mean age of the population was 61.66±11.1 years. The prevalence of multimorbidity, disability, and depression was found to be 27.6%, 23.3%, and 35.1% respectively. There was no significant difference between multimorbidity and depression across local levels, while there was a significant difference across disability status. There was a significant difference between multimorbidity and depression across genders. Conclusions: This study provides comprehensive insights into the socioeconomic status, behavioural factors, and health status of older adults in Nepal. Study findings can inform interventions and policies at local levels to consider the unique needs of the older population in Nepal. Keywords: Chronic diseases; depression; disability; Nepal; older adults.