However, studies have reported conflicting results concerningthe extent to which prevalence of anxiety symptoms varies during different stages of themenopausal transition with some studies indicating no statistically significant differences bymenopausal stage (4; 5) and others finding that early or late perimenopausal women havesignificantly higher rates of anxiety symptoms than premenopausal women (6; 7). Thus,whether the menopausal transition is a period of increased risk for anxiety is unclear.