---
title: Does premenstrual syndrome affect how well women think and remember?
description: The study found no clear differences in thinking, memory, or attention between women with PMS and those without, though women with PMS felt more depressed.
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/cognitive-functioning-in-premenstrual-syndrome-1996/
---

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- Does premenstrual syndrome affect how well women think and remember?

Cohort study, 1996

# Does premenstrual syndrome affect how well women think and remember?

The study found no clear differences in thinking, memory, or attention between women with PMS and those without, though women with PMS felt more depressed.

 Moderate study design

30 women with PMS and 31 women without PMS

## What they did

Cohort study comparing 30 women with PMS to 31 without. Women were tested during the follicular phase (days 8-10) and luteal phase (days 24-26) using tests that measure attention, memory, thinking flexibility, and mental processing.

## What they found

Women with PMS scored higher on depression, with a mean score of 13.3 indicating mild-to-moderate depression. Tests of attention, memory, thinking flexibility, and overall mental agility showed no significant differences between the two groups.

## What it means for you

Women with PMS may feel like they think less clearly before their period, but objective tests did not show real differences in thinking ability. The study was small, and researchers calculated they would need over 1000 women per group to detect very small differences.

30

women with PMS

31

women without PMS

13.3

mean depression score in PMS group

## About the study

Original title Cognitive functioning in premenstrual syndrome Authors Morgan M, Rapkin AJ, D'Elia L et al. Journal Obstetrics and gynecology Year 1996 Study design Cohort study Participants 1,000 What was tested observation of thinking ability at different menstrual cycle phases Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/s0029-7844(96)00362-6](https://doi.org/10.1016/s0029-7844(96)00362-6)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[Cognition, concentration and memory](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-cognition/)

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Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor.

## Related studies

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Randomised trial, 2025

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