Survey study, 1992
Do PMS symptoms stay the same from one menstrual cycle to the next?
About two-thirds of women (65%) had the same pattern of symptoms across two cycles, but one-third (35%) had different patterns. The presence or absence of symptoms before ovulation was more consistent across cycles than the overall symptom pattern.
What they did
54 women seeking help for PMS recorded symptoms daily for two consecutive menstrual cycles. Researchers classified each cycle as having pure PMS (symptoms only after ovulation), PM-aggravation (symptoms throughout the cycle), or no PMS (no cyclical pattern).
What they found
35 women (65%) received the same diagnosis in both cycles, while 19 women (35%) changed diagnostic category. 78% showed the same type of cyclical pattern between cycles, and 77% showed the same pattern for symptoms before ovulation. Cycles with a clear PMS pattern better distinguished women with psychiatric history than cycles without clear pattern.
What it means for you
For most women, their PMS pattern is fairly stable across cycles, but about one-third have variable symptoms. The timing of symptoms is more stable than whether symptoms follow a cycle at all. The main limitation is the small sample and only two cycles tracked.
54
women studied
65%
had same diagnosis across 2 cycles
35%
changed diagnostic category
About the study
- Original title
- Premenstrual syndrome: changes in symptom pattern between two menstrual cycles
- Authors
- Ulla‐Britt Ekholm, Stefan Hammarbäck, T. Bäuckströum
- Journal
- Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology
- Year
- 1992
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 54
- What was tested
- None (observational study)
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.3109/01674829209016710