This is usually the diagnosis when a woman has not had a menstrual period for 12 consecutive months, and there is no other obvious biologic or physiologic cause. Menopause is a natural event, not a disease, but it is the end of fertility, resulting from the ovaries slowing down the production of estrogen and progesterone.
Surgical menopause is when the ovaries are removed surgically.
Induced menopause is the result when the ovaries cease their function due to damage through drugs or x-rays. Premature menopause is considered to be when it occurs either naturally or is induced before age 40. Menopause is not a point in time but is a process happening over many years. Many different types of changes occur associated with decreasing estrogen levels. These changes begin most often in a woman's 40s and sometimes in her 30s.