Weight loss surgery was linked to more regular periods and fewer polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS) symptoms in women aged 18 to 45 living with obesity in a recent study.

The researchers recommend that women undergoing the procedure have access to preconception care and reproductive counselling to support their reproductive health.

Researchers at the University of Surrey analysed data over 24 months from 84 women who underwent bariatric surgery and 18 women living with obesity who did not have surgery.

Of those who underwent surgery, 49 had gastric bypass procedures and 35 had gastric sleeve surgery.

Women who underwent metabolic bariatric surgery lost more than 30kg on average at 12 and 24 months after the procedure.

Among women with polycystic ovaries, the condition persisted in only 10 per cent after 24 months.

Women also reported a resolution of clinical hirsutism, or excess body hair, by 12 months.

Women who had previously experienced irregular periods reported more regular menstrual cycles after surgery.

Professor Martin Whyte, co-author of the study and professor of metabolic medicine at the University of Surrey, said: “A large proportion of those undergoing bariatric surgery are women of reproductive age, who may be planning a pregnancy in the coming years.

“So much remains unknown about the impact of this type of surgery on women who are planning to have children.

“This raises the question of when the ideal time after surgery is to conceive.”

Women have a higher prevalence of obesity than men, with 57 per cent of women in the UK classified as overweight and 27 per cent living with obesity, which can affect fertility and the health of an unborn baby.

The researchers said 17 women had healthy pregnancies following surgery.

Although this was not specifically examined in the study, no difference in birth weight was observed between babies conceived within or after the first year.

Dr Kathryn Hart, co-author of the study and associate professor in nutrition and dietetics at the University of Surrey, said: “What we have found is that bariatric surgery positively affects the reproductive health of women living with obesity and can improve the likelihood of them having a healthy pregnancy after surgery.

“Dysregulated hormone levels, irregular periods and conditions such as polycystic ovaries are affected by obesity.

“By reducing this, what we have seen is that it can lead to improvements without the need for medication.

“We would suggest that clinicians consider medical intervention for obesity to treat irregularities in the menstrual cycle and issues with fertility.”

Estriol treatment may ease menopause brain fog and other cognitive symptoms, according to a small observational study of 20 menopausal women.

The study involved menopausal women with an average age of 53.

They underwent an initial assessment of their cognitive symptoms before receiving a customised regimen of estriol and progesterone for 12 months.

Estriol is a natural form of oestrogen that occurs during pregnancy and has been used in Europe and Asia to treat menopausal symptoms including hot flushes and genitourinary symptoms.

It differs from estradiol, the most commonly used oestrogen hormone therapy in the US, by binding primarily to a different oestrogen receptor in the brain.

Previous research has shown that estriol may help protect brain cells and reduce brain atrophy in the hippocampus, the region responsible for learning and memory.

After 12 months of treatment, participants reported significant reductions in brain fog, concentration problems, working memory problems, slower processing speed, verbal memory problems and problem-solving difficulties compared with before treatment.

Senior author Dr Rhonda Voskuhl, a neurologist and member of the Comprehensive Menopause Center at UCLA Health, said: “Oestrogen plays a well-documented role in protecting the brain, yet there are still no approved type and dose of treatment that specifically targets the cognitive symptoms so many women experience during menopause.

“Women are often told to simply live with brain fog, when in fact there is a neuroscience basis for it, and potentially a way to address it. That gap in care is what motivated us to look more closely at estriol.”

Researchers also examined estriol treatment in midlife female mice to investigate how the hormone treatment might work.

Estriol reduced markers of brain pathology in the hippocampus and improved measures of working and spatial memory in the animals.

The findings are preliminary. The study was a small case series with no placebo group or randomisation, meaning the results may not apply to broader populations.

The researchers said larger placebo-controlled clinical trials using brain imaging and standardised cognitive testing are needed to confirm the findings on cognitive symptoms.

The treatment used in the study was invented by Voskuhl and is patented by UCLA. UCLA licenses the patent to CleopatraRX, which sells the treatment as PearlPAK. Voskuhl serves as a medical adviser to CleopatraRX.

Deaf women face barriers to menstrual health information and support at UK universities, according to a study involving 12 BSL users.

Researchers believe it is the first study of its kind.

Participants described difficulties discussing sensitive health issues because universities and healthcare services often rely on hearing-centred communication systems.

The study was led by Professor Jemina Napier from Heriot-Watt’s School of Social Sciences and involved interviews and co-design workshops with 12 deaf women who use British Sign Language (BSL) and work or study in UK universities.

Napier said: “Our findings show that deaf women face many of the same menstrual health challenges as hearing women, but they also encounter additional barriers because information and support are rarely designed around their language and communication needs.

“The burden of constantly adapting to hearing-centred systems can leave deaf women feeling excluded from conversations about their own health.”

Participants reported a lack of accessible information about menstruation, endometriosis, fibroids, perimenopause and menopause, despite working in highly educated environments.

They also reported feeling excluded from informal conversations where hearing colleagues often share experiences and learn about menstrual health.

Researchers identified four main issues affecting participants: communication, access to information, interpreter dynamics and factors including ethnicity, geography and additional disabilities.

Many participants said they preferred discussing menstrual health directly in BSL but rarely had that opportunity because managers and healthcare professionals did not sign.

Instead, they often communicated through interpreters or written English, which some said reduced privacy, comfort and confidence when discussing personal health issues.

Napier said: “A recurring theme was that of the ‘deaf tax’, which refers to the additional emotional and practical effort deaf women need to continually undertake to explain their needs or secure support.

“It’s ongoing emotional labour and fatigue and reduced participation in menstrual-health related activities.”

BSL interpreters were seen as essential, but participants said their involvement could raise concerns about confidentiality, trust and accuracy, particularly when discussing sensitive topics.

Several highlighted that male interpreters appeared uncomfortable discussing menstrual health.

The researchers also found that existing menstrual health information is largely produced in English and then translated into BSL, rather than being created in BSL from the outset.

Abigail Gorman, deaf independent facilitator, health policy consultant and co-author of the report, said: “To be in charge of your own health, you need to be able to recognise when something’s wrong, name it, and ask for help – in an appointment where you can actually be understood. That’s the whole chain.

“But if the information was never accessible in the first place, deaf women can’t even get to step one. If the appointment itself isn’t accessible either, that breaks the chain all over again, when it matters most.

“BSL-first health resources aren’t a nice-to-have; they’re how deaf women get to be equal participants in decisions about our own health.”

Napier said: “The deaf women we interviewed want more visual, culturally appropriate resources designed specifically for them – not a crude translation of existing material.

“BSL accessibility should be the default for menstrual health information and events.

“We need improved interpreter policies and BSL-first educational resources.

“The university sector should also establish a UK-wide, deaf-led health and wellbeing network.

“All these changes would reduce communication barriers and improve access to menstrual health support for deaf women working in higher education.”