What is the Greene Climacteric Scale?
The Greene Climacteric Scale is a 21-item, self-completed symptom questionnaire constructed by James Greene and published in 1998 in the journal Maturitas under the title "Constructing a standard climacteric scale." It was built to give researchers and clinicians a consistent, standardized way to measure the severity of symptoms people report during the climacteric — the years around the menopause transition — instead of relying on unstructured description. Because it's short, free of any single manufacturer's branding, and has been used in menopause research for over two decades, it remains one of the most widely used symptom scales in this field.
How scoring works
Each of the 21 items is rated on a four-point scale: Not at all (0), A little (1), Quite a bit (2), or Extremely (3). The first 20 items combine into a total score from 0 to 63, made up of three independent subscales — Psychological (items 1-11, out of 33), Somatic (items 12-18, out of 21), and Vasomotor (items 19-20, out of 6). The 21st item, about interest in sex, is treated as a standalone probe and reported on its own rather than folded into the total. Higher numbers mean more severe or more frequent symptoms; there is no published cutoff score that separates "normal" from "abnormal" — the scale describes severity, it doesn't diagnose anything.
What the four subscales measure
Psychological covers eleven items split into two groups: Anxiety (a racing heart, feeling tense or on edge, trouble sleeping, panic, and difficulty concentrating) and Depressed Mood (tiredness, loss of interest, low mood, tearfulness, and irritability). Somatic covers seven physical symptoms sometimes linked to hormonal change — dizziness, head pressure, numbness or tingling, headaches, joint and muscle pain, and breathing difficulty. Vasomotor covers hot flushes and night sweats, the two symptoms most classically associated with perimenopause and menopause. Sexual function is a single item asking about loss of interest in sex, reported separately because one question can't carry the same weight as a seven-item subscale.
How clinicians use it
The Greene Climacteric Scale is not used to diagnose perimenopause or menopause — that's a clinical judgment based on your age, symptoms, and history. Instead, it's most valuable as a repeatable measurement: completing it periodically, for example before starting hormone therapy and again a few months later, gives a structured way to see whether overall symptom burden is improving. Because it breaks symptoms into psychological, somatic, vasomotor, and sexual categories, it can also help a conversation with a clinician stay specific — rather than "I feel awful," you can point to which categories have shifted and by how much.
How this tool protects your privacy
This page runs the entire questionnaire and scoring calculation in your browser. No answer, partial response, or final score is ever sent to a server, stored in a database, or logged anywhere — you can verify this yourself by opening your browser's developer tools and watching the network tab while you complete it. If you choose to print or save your results, that happens locally on your device too.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Greene Climacteric Scale a diagnostic test?
No. It measures the severity of symptoms you're reporting right now — it does not diagnose perimenopause, menopause, anxiety, or depression. There is no pass/fail score. Clinicians typically use it to track how symptoms change over time, alongside a full clinical assessment.
Does this tool store or send my answers anywhere?
No. Every calculation happens in your browser using JavaScript running on your own device. Your answers and scores are never transmitted to Ripple's servers, stored, or logged.
How often should I retake the Greene Climacteric Scale?
There's no fixed rule, but because the scale is designed to track change rather than give a one-off diagnosis, it's most useful when repeated periodically — for example monthly, or before and after a change in treatment — so you and your clinician can see a trend rather than a single number.
Can I bring my results to a doctor's appointment?
Yes. After you complete the questionnaire, you can print or save a clean summary of your total score, subscale scores, and individual answers to bring to a GP or menopause specialist appointment as a starting point for discussion.
What do the four subscale scores mean?
Psychological covers anxiety and low mood, Somatic covers physical body symptoms, Vasomotor covers hot flushes and night sweats, and Sexual function is a single question about interest in sex, reported on its own. A higher score in any category means more severe or more frequent symptoms in that category.
Who created the Greene Climacteric Scale?
The scale was constructed by James Greene and published in Maturitas in 1998. It's a validated research instrument that has been used in menopause studies and clinical practice for over two decades. The underlying instrument text is owned by its original author; use and licensing terms are determined separately by the rights holder.
What does Ripple do with the Greene Climacteric Scale?
Nothing, on this page — your results stay on your device unless you choose to save or print them. If you'd like to track this score over time alongside your other symptoms, Ripple's app can do that as part of a broader symptom and evidence tracker, but using this free self-assessment doesn't require an account.