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Study, 2019

What are the different ways to treat PMS and PMDD?

There are two main treatment approaches: medications that reduce hormone changes during the menstrual cycle and medications that affect the brain and nervous system. Some alternative therapies also have supporting evidence.

Early or limited evidence Not applicable - this is a review

What they did

This is a review of different treatment approaches for PMS and PMDD, discussing how these conditions develop and what options are available to treat them.

What they found

PMS and PMDD are caused by hormone level changes during the menstrual cycle and imbalances in brain chemicals. Treatment uses two main approaches: suppressing hormone changes during the cycle, or affecting the central nervous system. Alternative therapies have evidence supporting their use.

What it means for you

This shows that there are multiple ways to think about and treat PMS and PMDD, and that different approaches may work for different women. The main limitation is that this is an overview of existing approaches rather than new research about how well they work.

2

main treatment directions (hormone suppression and CNS effects)

About the study

Original title
Modern views on treatment of premenstrual syndrome
Authors
Irina V. Kuznetsova
Journal
Medical alphabet
Year
2019
Study design
Study
What was tested
Not applicable
Open access
Yes
Original abstract

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a common disease associated with a serious decrease in the quality of life of a woman, a violation of habitual life and working capacity. The etiology of PMS and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) has not yet been established, but it is clear that their development is associated with fluctuations in hormone levels within the ovulatory menstrual cycle and impaired balance of neurohormones in the central nervous system (CNS). In connection with these ideas, in the treatment of PMS, two main directions are used: the suppression of hormonal fluctuations and the effect on the central nervous system. Among the large number of drugs claimed for the treatment of PMS and PMDD, the so-called alternative therapy deserves special attention, in which several methods have a worthy evidence base for positive effects.

Reproduced under CC-BY.

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