---
title: Do women with PMDD have different serotonin activity in their blood?
description: Yes, women with untreated PMDD showed higher serotonin binding sites in their blood compared to controls, and this difference disappeared with hormone treatme
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/binding-of-3h-paroxetine-to-serotonin-uptake-sites-and-of-3h-lysergic-acid-2001/
---

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- Do women with PMDD have different serotonin activity in their blood?

Randomised trial, 2001

# Do women with PMDD have different serotonin activity in their blood?

Yes, women with untreated PMDD showed higher serotonin binding sites in their blood compared to controls, and this difference disappeared with hormone treatment.

 Early or limited evidence

Women with PMDD compared to control women

## What they did

Study measuring serotonin receptor binding on blood platelets in women with PMDD treated with buserelin (a hormone medication) or placebo, compared to control women. Two types of serotonin binding were measured.

## What they found

Women with untreated PMDD had significantly higher serotonin uptake binding sites (Bmax) in the follicular phase compared to controls. When treated with buserelin, this difference disappeared. PMDD symptoms like depression and irritability were relieved during buserelin treatment. No differences were found in the other type of serotonin binding studied.

## What it means for you

This suggests serotonin changes may be an underlying biological trait in PMDD. However, this study measured serotonin binding in blood cells, not the brain directly, so it is unclear how much this relates to actual brain serotonin changes. Sample size is not specified.

3

Groups compared (buserelin-treated PMDD, placebo-treated PMDD, controls)

## About the study

Original title Binding of [3H]paroxetine to serotonin uptake sites and of [3H]lysergic acid diethylamide to 5-HT2A receptors in platelets from women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder during gonadotropin releasing hormone treatment Authors Bixo M, Allard P, Bäckström T et al. Journal Psychoneuroendocrinology Year 2001 Study design Randomised trial What was tested Buserelin (GnRH agonist) Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/s0306-4530(01)00010-5](https://doi.org/10.1016/s0306-4530(01)00010-5)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[SSRIs and antidepressants](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-ssri/)[GnRH agonists and ovarian suppression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-gnrh/)[Diet and nutrition](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-diet/)

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