---
title: Is early life trauma more common in women with PMDD? | Niyora
description: Yes. 83% of women with PMDD experienced early life trauma, much higher than the general Australian population, suggesting a strong link between childhood trau
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/the-prevalence-of-early-life-trauma-in-premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-pmdd-2022/
---

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- Is early life trauma more common in women with PMDD?

Survey study, 2022

# Is early life trauma more common in women with PMDD?

Yes. 83% of women with PMDD experienced early life trauma, much higher than the general Australian population, suggesting a strong link between childhood trauma and PMDD.

 Early or limited evidence

100 women with PMDD diagnosed at an Australian clinic

## What they did

Researchers examined medical records from 100 women diagnosed with PMDD at an Australian clinic. They documented the types of trauma each woman experienced (physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, neglect) and the ages at which they occurred (0-5, 6-10, 11-14, or 15-18 years).

## What they found

83% of women with PMDD had experienced early life trauma. Emotional abuse was most common at 71%. All trauma types were more prevalent in women with PMDD than in the general Australian population. Trauma occurred at similar rates across all age groups (59% to 66%), and 51.8% of women experienced trauma during all four age periods.

## What it means for you

Early life trauma, especially emotional abuse or chronic trauma throughout childhood, may be linked to PMDD. However, this study only examined one Australian clinic, so findings may not apply to other countries. The study cannot prove that trauma causes PMDD.

83%

had early life trauma

71%

experienced emotional abuse

51.8%

experienced trauma across all age groups

## About the study

Original title The prevalence of early life trauma in premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) Authors Kulkarni J, Leyden O, Gavrilidis E et al. Journal Psychiatry research Year 2022 Study design Survey study Participants 100 What was tested None - observational study Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114381](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114381)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[PTSD and trauma](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-ptsd-trauma/)

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