--- title: What changes happen in the brains of people with PMS? | Niyora description: Multiple brain areas show different activity in women with PMS compared to women without it, particularly in areas that process emotions and visual informatio url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/brain-activation-of-college-students-in-china-with-premenstrual-syndrome-2021/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - What changes happen in the brains of people with PMS? Study, 2021 # What changes happen in the brains of people with PMS? Multiple brain areas show different activity in women with PMS compared to women without it, particularly in areas that process emotions and visual information. Early or limited evidence 28 college students in China (13 with PMS, 15 without) ## What they did 13 women with PMS and 15 women without PMS underwent brain imaging scans during the luteal phase (the week before menstruation). During scans, they viewed pictures designed to trigger sadness. ## What they found Women with PMS had increased activity in brain areas involved with processing images and movement. They had decreased activity in brain areas involved with thinking, planning, attention, emotion control, and movement coordination. ## What it means for you These brain differences suggest PMS affects how the brain handles emotions and visual information. The differences appeared when women felt sad, suggesting their brains respond differently to negative emotions before menstruation. The study was small and only included college students in one country, so results may not apply to all women. 13 College students with PMS 15 College students without PMS ## About the study Original title Brain Activation of College Students in China With Premenstrual Syndrome Localized by BOLD-fMRI Authors Gao D, Gao M, An L et al. Journal Research Square Year 2021 Study design Study What was tested Brain imaging during emotion-evoking picture viewing Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-568217/v1](https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-568217/v1) Original abstract Background: Most studies on the mechanism behind premenstrual syndrome (PMS) have focused on fluctuating hormones, but little evidence exists regarding functional abnormalities in the affected brain regions of college students. Thus, the aim of this study is to localize PMS's abnormal brain regions by BOLD-fMRI in college students. Methods: : Thirteen PMS patients and fifteen healthy control (HC) subjects underwent a BOLD-fMRI scan during the luteal phase induced by depressive emotion pictures. The BOLD-fMRI data were processed by SPM 8 software and rest software based on MATLAB platform. Each cluster volume threshold (cluster) was greater than 389 continuous voxels, and the brain area with single voxel threshold P < 0.05 (after correction) was defined as the area with a significant difference. The emotion report form and the instruction implementation checklist were used to evaluate the emotion induced by picture. Results: : Compared to the HC, right inferior occipital gyrus, right middle occipital gyrus, right lingual gyrus, right fusiform gyrus, right inferior temporal gyrus, cerebelum_crus1_R，cerebelum_6_R, culmen, the cerebellum anterior lobe, tuber, cerebellar tonsil of PMS patients were enhanced activation. Sub-lobar，sub-gyral，extra-nuclear，right orbit part of superior frontal gyrus, right middle temporal gyrus, right Orbit part of inferior frontal gyrus, limbic lobe, right insula, bilateral anterior and adjacent cingulate gyrus, bilateral caudate, caudate head, bilateral putamen, left globus pallidus were decreased activation. Conclusion: Our findings may improve our understanding of the neural mechanisms involved in PMS. Reproduced under CC-BY. ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Students and academic performance](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-education/)[Adolescents and young people](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-adolescents/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Randomised trial, 2026 Does aerobic or resistance exercise reduce anxiety in women with PMS? Lab study, 2026 Do core stability exercises help women with PMDD? Survey study, 2025 Is emotional eating linked to PMS in university women? Survey study, 2025 What psychological and personal factors predict which university students will develop premenstrual syndrome? Survey study, 2025 How common are premenstrual symptoms in college students? Survey study, 2024 How much do Indonesian 9th graders know about PMS and what are their attitudes? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗