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.
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
Topics
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