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Survey study, 2018

Does how women feel about their period relate to how severe their PMS is?

Yes. Women with negative attitudes toward menstruation had more intense PMS symptoms.

Moderate study design 450 female nursing staff aged 25-50 from various tertiary hospitals in India

What they did

A cross-sectional study of 450 female nursing staff aged 25-50 from various hospitals in India. Participants completed questionnaires measuring PMS symptoms and their attitudes toward menstruation.

What they found

85.6% had premenstrual symptoms overall (by ACOG criteria). 36.5% met the stricter diagnosis of PMS (by DSM-IV-TR criteria). There was a negative correlation between PMS intensity and positive attitudes toward menstruation across all age groups.

What it means for you

Negative attitudes about menstruation may link to worse PMS symptoms. Education and positive messaging about periods could help. This was a cross-sectional study of nurses only. Findings may not apply to all women, and direction of causation is unclear.

85.6%

with symptoms (ACOG criteria)

36.5%

meeting PMS diagnosis (DSM)

450

nursing staff studied

About the study

Original title
A Study on Premenstrual Syndrome symptoms and their association with the Attitudes towards Menstruation in Nursing Staff
Authors
Hiba Narvel, Heena Merchant, Gauri Kore et al.
Journal
Indian Journal of Mental Health(IJMH)
Year
2018
Study design
Survey study
Open access
Yes

Topics