Case report, 1987
Do hot flushes in premenstrual syndrome involve the same physical changes as menopausal hot flushes?
Yes. This woman's hot flushes during PMS showed the same physical changes as menopausal hot flushes.
What they did
Researchers tracked a 26-year-old woman's symptoms for 2 menstrual cycles. During one cycle when her PMS score was high, they monitored her skin electrical activity, finger temperature, and hormone levels for 8 hours.
What they found
During 8 hours of monitoring she had 5 hot flush episodes. Each episode involved a drop in skin electrical resistance of up to 4000 ohms. Three episodes included a rise in finger temperature of up to 10 degrees C. These physical changes match those seen in menopausal hot flushes.
What it means for you
This suggests hot flushes in PMS may involve similar hormone-related physical changes as those in menopause. The limit is that this is one case, so we don't know if other women with PMS have the same physical responses.
5
hot flush episodes during monitoring
4000 ohms
maximum drop in skin electrical resistance
10 degrees C
maximum rise in finger temperature
About the study
- Original title
- Objective measurement of hot flushes associated with the premenstrual syndrome
- Authors
- Casper RF, Graves GR, Reid RL
- Journal
- Fertility and sterility
- Year
- 1987
- Study design
- Case report
- What was tested
- None. This was observational monitoring.
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/s0015-0282(16)50016-8
Topics
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