Study, 2016
Do women with different types of premenstrual symptoms use different coping strategies?
Different symptom types relate to different impacts on health, but women used similar coping strategies regardless of their symptom type.
What they did
349 women with premenstrual symptoms used a smartphone app to track their symptoms and coping strategies over time. Researchers identified different symptom clusters and compared health outcomes and coping strategies across groups.
What they found
Three symptom groups were identified: general discomfort, negative affect, and turmoil. These groups differed in perceived health, depressive feelings, quality of life, and suicidal thinking. However, women in different symptom groups used similar coping strategies with similar frequency and reported similar effectiveness.
What it means for you
Women with different types of premenstrual symptoms may benefit from tailored approaches rather than one treatment for all. The main limits are that this study relied on self-report through a smartphone app and only showed associations, not whether different approaches actually help. Findings only apply to women who use smartphones.
349
women
3
symptom clusters identified
smartphone app
method
About the study
- Original title
- Premenstrual symptom clusters and women's coping style in Korea: happy healthy 20s application study
- Authors
- Cha C, Nam SJ
- Journal
- Journal of psychosomatic obstetrics and gynaecology
- Year
- 2016
- Study design
- Study
- Participants
- 349
- What was tested
- None; observational tracking through smartphone app
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.3109/0167482x.2016.1157159
Topics
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