Case-control study, 1990
Is melatonin released differently at night in women with premenstrual syndrome?
Yes. In this small study, women with PMS had melatonin release that switched off earlier at night and lasted a shorter time than in women without PMS, but the study was very small so this needs confirming in bigger groups.
What they did
Researchers took blood samples every 30 minutes overnight (6pm to 9am) to measure melatonin in 8 women with confirmed premenstrual syndrome and 8 similar healthy women (matched for age and cycle timing). They did this at four points across the menstrual cycle: early follicular, late follicular, midluteal, and late luteal.
What they found
Women with PMS had an earlier (phase-advanced) switch-off of melatonin at night, which meant melatonin was released for a shorter time and the overall amount (area under the curve) was lower than in healthy women. There was no significant difference between the groups in when melatonin started, its peak level, or in estradiol or progesterone levels.
What it means for you
This points to a possible body-clock (circadian) problem in PMS, which fits with reports that some PMS treatments affecting circadian rhythm, like light therapy or sleep deprivation, can help. The study only looked at 8 women per group, so the findings are preliminary and cannot show that the melatonin change causes PMS.
8
Women with PMS studied
8
Matched healthy controls
4
Cycle phases sampled
About the study
- Original title
- Altered waveform of plasma nocturnal melatonin secretion in premenstrual depression
- Authors
- Parry BL, Berga SL, Kripke DF et al.
- Journal
- Archives of general psychiatry
- Year
- 1990
- Study design
- Case-control study
- What was tested
- No treatment tested; this was an observational comparison of overnight melatonin levels.
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.1990.01810240059010
Topics
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