Hot Flashes Associated with Menopause in the State of Campeche, Mexico: Biometric Measurement and Self-Reported Experience

摘要

The purpose of this study was to apply a phenomenological perspective in order to better understand hot flashes among 87 Maya, 60 non-Maya, and 8 uncategorized women from rural and urban communities in the state of Campeche, Mexico. We combined in-depth interviews with ambulatory hot flash monitors to show that while the majority of women had biometrically measurable sternal (75%) and nuchal (81%) hot flashes, they were less likely to report hot flashes (40%) during the study period. The number of biometrically measured hot flashes differed significantly across the four communities, but the number of reported hot flashes remained equally low. Across the entire sample, Maya and non-Maya women did not differ in the likelihood of demonstrating sternal and nuchal hot flashes, but Maya women were significantly more likely to push the buttons on the monitor to subjectively report a hot flash (48% vs. 27%). Qualitative results show that these findings can be explained by attention to the language of hot flashes (calores) and by the observation that hot flashes are naturalized by the hot and humid environment into everyday life. Women do not differentiate or separate the expression of hot flashes from the lived experience of the hot climate.