Survey study, 2025
Are PMDD symptoms linked to depression and anxiety?
Yes. Women with higher PMDD-type symptom scores were much more likely to have depression and anxiety, and most women with PMDD had severe depression and moderate-to-high anxiety.
What they did
Cross-sectional study of 100 women aged 15 to 49 at a gynaecology outpatient clinic in Hapur, India, from August 2024 to January 2025, all with PMDD-like symptoms. They were scored on a symptom tool (PSST) and on standard depression and anxiety scales (BDI, BAI). Tests checked links between symptom scores, depression, anxiety, education and menstrual flow.
What they found
65 of the 100 women were diagnosed with PMDD and 35 had mild PMS. Symptom scores differed significantly by education level (p=0.01) and amount of menstrual flow (p=0.006), and duration of menstrual flow predicted symptom severity (p=0.04). PMDD symptom scores were strongly linked to depression (p<0.001) and anxiety (p<0.001), with most PMDD women having severe depression and moderate-to-high anxiety.
What it means for you
PMDD appears closely tied to depression and anxiety severity in this group, and lower education and heavier or longer periods seem to make symptoms worse. The study is small, from a single hospital in India, and cross-sectional, so it cannot show which problem causes which.
65/100
diagnosed with PMDD
84.22
link to depression (chi2)
64.84
link to anxiety (chi2)
About the study
- Original title
- Association of Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder with Depression and Anxiety in Women of Reproductive Age Group: A Cross-sectional Study
- Authors
- Manisha Upadhyay, Saurav Kumar, Meenu Saini et al.
- Journal
- JOURNAL OF CLINICAL AND DIAGNOSTIC RESEARCH
- Year
- 2025
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 100
- What was tested
- None (observational screening study, no treatment tested)
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.7860/jcdr/2025/80492.21470
Topics
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