Survey study, 2017
Can a symptom diary distinguish between PMS and PMDD?
Yes, researchers developed scoring systems for symptom diaries that reliably distinguished between PMS and PMDD and correlated well with other assessments.
What they did
98 women aged 20 to 45 years kept symptom diaries over two menstrual cycles. They also completed a retrospective screening for premenstrual symptoms and answered questionnaires about impairment from August 2013 to August 2015. Researchers created two scoring systems to evaluate the diaries.
What they found
The two scoring systems showed moderate to good reliability (Cronbach's alpha 0.83 to 0.96). The scores correlated well with other PMS measures and retrospective screening tools, but showed low correlation with personality traits.
What it means for you
These scoring methods could help doctors and researchers evaluate symptom diaries in practice, but more validation studies are needed in different settings.
98
Number of women
0.83-0.96
Cronbach's alpha reliability
2
Menstrual cycles tracked
About the study
- Original title
- A symptom diary to assess severe premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder
- Authors
- Janda C, Kues JN, Andersson G et al.
- Journal
- Women & health
- Year
- 2017
- Study design
- Survey study
- What was tested
- None (assessment and validation study)
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/03630242.2016.1206055
Topics
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