Age and the prevalence of bleeding disorders in women with menorrhagia.

A study was conducted to evaluate the frequency and types of hemostatic defects occurring in adolescent and perimenopausal-age women diagnosed with menorrhagia. A total of 115 women with a physician diagnosis of menorrhagia including 25 adolescent women 25 perimenopausal- age women and 65 women between the ages of 20 and 44 underwent comprehensive hemostatic testing for possible bleeding disorders. Frequencies of bleeding disorders were calculated and compared. Forty-seven percent of women were found to have hemostatic abnormalities including platelet dysfunction von Willebrand’s disease and coagulation factor deficiencies. Adolescents and perimenopausal-age women with menorrhagia were just as likely to have hemostatic abnormalities as were women aged 20 to 44. These results demonstrate that underlying bleeding disorders are frequently found in adolescent postadolescent reproductive age and perimenopausal-age women presenting with menorrhagia and suggest that women with menorrhagia should be considered for further hemostatic evaluation. (authors)