Summary
Purpose and UseThe Greene Climacteric Scale (GCS) is a standardized self-report questionnaire designed to measure the severity of symptoms commonly experienced by women during perimenopause and menopause. Developed by Dr. John G. Greene in 1976, it is widely used in clinical practice and research to assess the impact of menopausal symptoms on a woman's well-being and to evaluate the effectiveness of treatments. The GCS was developed based on factor analysis of symptoms reported by women in the climacteric period. Its structure and use are well-documented in medical literature. The Greene Climacteric Scale is a twenty-one–item, self-administered questionnaire that captures the symptoms that occur in perimenopause. Each item is rated on a Likert-style scale from “Not at all” (0) to “Extremely” (3). Scores can be derived in six symptom categories: Psychological, Anxiety, Depressed Mood, Vasomotor, Somatic, and Sexuality. Scale Composition and ScoringThe scale consists of 21 items. The respondent rates how much she has been bothered by each symptom over the past month on a 4-point Likert scale:0 = Not at all1 = A little2 = Quite a bit3 = Extremely The total score is calculated by summing the scores for all 21 items, with a possible range from 0 to 63. Higher scores indicate greater symptom severity. SubscalesThe items are grouped into subscales to provide a more detailed assessment of different symptom clusters:Psychological (11 items): This is the largest subscale and is further divided into two components:Anxiety (items 1-7): e.g., feeling tense or nervous, difficulty in concentrating, feeling tired or lacking in energy.Depression (items 8-11): e.g., crying spells, loss of interest in most things.Somatic (7 items): These are general physical symptoms (items 12-18), such as headaches, breathing difficulties, and dizziness.Vasomotor (2 items): This subscale specifically addresses hot flushes (item 19) and sweating at night (item 20).Sexual Function (1 item): This consists of a single item, 'loss of interest in sex' (item 21), and is often analyzed separately. Scores are calculated for each subscale by summing the relevant item scores. This allows for a nuanced understanding of the patient's primary complaints, whether they are psychological, physical, or vasomotor in nature. InterpretationWhile there are no universally established cutoff scores, the total score and subscale scores provide a quantitative measure of symptom severity. A higher score on a particular subscale suggests that the symptoms in that category are most troublesome for the individual. The scale is valuable for initiating discussions about treatment options and for tracking symptom changes over time in response to therapy.