Survey study, 2003
How common is PMS and what factors are associated with it in college-aged women in Saudi Arabia?
96.6% experienced at least one premenstrual symptom and 37.5% had high severity. Risk factors included maternal history of PMS, perceived mental stress, physical inactivity, and consuming sweet foods and coffee, though these explained only 14% of symptom variation.
What they did
Cross-sectional survey of 464 college-aged women enrolled in medical, nursing, and health technology programs at a university in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. Participants answered a self-report questionnaire about premenstrual symptoms experienced during the previous six months.
What they found
448 women (96.6%) experienced at least one premenstrual symptom. 176 women (37.5%) had high symptom severity scores. Significant associations were found with maternal history of PMS, self-perception of mental stress, lower physical activity, consumption of sweet-tasting foods, and coffee consumption. However, these factors combined explained only 14% of the variability in symptom scores.
What it means for you
PMS is extremely common in this college-aged population. Several lifestyle and psychological factors are associated with PMS, but they explain only a small fraction of symptom variation, suggesting many unknown causes remain. Findings are specific to Saudi Arabia and may not apply elsewhere.
96.6%
Experienced at least one symptom
37.5%
Had high symptom severity
14%
Variation explained by risk factors
About the study
- Original title
- Prevalence and predictors of premenstrual syndrome among college-aged women in Saudi Arabia
- Authors
- Rasheed P, Al-Sowielem LS
- Journal
- Annals of Saudi medicine
- Year
- 2003
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 464
- What was tested
- None. This was an observational study examining associations between lifestyle factors and PMS symptom severity.
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.5144/0256-4947.2003.381
Topics
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