Study, 1989
Can premenstrual mood changes be reliably measured and how common are they?
A mathematical method was developed that reliably detected premenstrual mood changes. About 7 out of 10 menstrual cycles from women with PMS showed clear premenstrual mood worsening, compared to just 1 out of 12 cycles from women without PMS.
What they did
Researchers collected daily mood records from 133 menstrual cycles in women who reported having PMS. They applied a mathematical analysis method (Fourier analysis) to fit a pattern model to the daily mood scores across each cycle. They then compared the results with cycles from women who reported not having PMS.
What they found
Using the new analysis method, clear premenstrual mood tension was detected in 70 percent of the 133 cycles from women with PMS. This was much higher than the 8 percent of cycles showing premenstrual mood tension in women who reported not having PMS. The mathematical method successfully distinguished cycles with significant premenstrual mood changes from those without.
What it means for you
Most menstrual cycles in women with PMS show a clear pattern of mood worsening before the period, while this is uncommon in women without PMS. The new mathematical method provides a more reliable way to identify premenstrual mood changes. However, the study focused mainly on developing the measurement method rather than understanding causes or treatments.
133
menstrual cycles from women with PMS
70%
cycles with clear premenstrual mood changes
8%
cycles with premenstrual mood changes in women without PMS
About the study
- Original title
- Assessment of the significance and severity of premenstrual tension--I. A new model
- Authors
- Livesey JH, Wells JE, Metcalf MG et al.
- Journal
- Journal of psychosomatic research
- Year
- 1989
- Study design
- Study
- Participants
- 133
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/0022-3999(89)90018-4
Topics
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