---
title: Do women with PMDD have lower serotonin activity? | Niyora
description: Women with PMDD had a significantly weaker hormone response to a serotonin challenge compared to healthy women, suggesting lower serotonin activity may be inv
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/blunted-serotonin-response-to-fenfluramine-challenge-in-premenstrual-dysphoric-1997/
---

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- Do women with PMDD have lower serotonin activity?

Randomised trial, 1997

# Do women with PMDD have lower serotonin activity?

Women with PMDD had a significantly weaker hormone response to a serotonin challenge compared to healthy women, suggesting lower serotonin activity may be involved in PMDD. However, this is a very small laboratory study, so findings need confirmation.

 Early or limited evidence

9 women with PMDD and 11 healthy women

## What they did

Researchers gave 9 women with PMDD and 11 healthy women the drug fenfluramine during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Fenfluramine releases serotonin in the brain. They measured prolactin response, a hormone that rises when serotonin is active, to assess serotonin activity.

## What they found

Compared with healthy women, women with PMDD showed a significantly weaker hormone response (prolactin) to fenfluramine, suggesting lower serotonin activity.

## What it means for you

This finding supports the theory that low serotonin activity is involved in PMDD, which helps explain why serotonin-boosting drugs help PMDD. However, this is a very small study using an indirect measure of serotonin, and it only looked at one point in the menstrual cycle. Much larger studies are needed to confirm these findings.

9

women with PMDD

11

healthy control women

Luteal phase

timing of test

## About the study

Original title Blunted serotonin response to fenfluramine challenge in premenstrual dysphoric disorder Authors FitzGerald M, Malone KM, Li S et al. Journal The American journal of psychiatry Year 1997 Study design Randomised trial Participants 11 What was tested Fenfluramine challenge test during luteal phase Read the paper [doi.org/10.1176/ajp.154.4.556](https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.154.4.556)

## Topics

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

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## Related studies

Cohort study, 2026

What genetic factors are linked to premenstrual symptoms?

Systematic review, 2026

How often do mood disorders and PMS or PMDD occur together?

Systematic review, 2026

Does vitamin D supplementation help PMS symptoms?

Study, 2026

How do women with PMDD process emotions differently in their brains?

Systematic review, 2026

Why do some women experience mood changes linked to their menstrual cycle?

Systematic review, 2026

How much of PMDD treatment improvement comes from placebo effect?

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