Survey study, 2007
Is depression before a period linked to depression at menopause?
Yes. Women who were depressed premenstrually also tend to be depressed around menopause, suggesting a shared cause that may involve hormones, psychology, or both. This link held regardless of age or hormone therapy use.
What they did
Surveyed 110 women with mean age 52 years. They rated their current mood and recalled their mood at different life stages: before their period, during pregnancy, after delivery, and around menopause. Used a visual scale to measure mood.
What they found
Women with current depressed mood around menopause also reported depressed mood before menstruation in the past, and this association was statistically significant. No link was found between mood before menstruation and mood during pregnancy or after delivery. The findings were the same regardless of age, menopausal status, or hormone replacement therapy use.
What it means for you
Premenstrual depression and depression around menopause may share a common cause, possibly hormonal or psychological. Main limitation: the study relied on women's memories of past moods, which can be unreliable. It only looked at one age group around menopause, so findings may not apply to younger women.
110
women studied
52
mean age in years
About the study
- Original title
- Depressed mood through women's reproductive cycle: correlation to mood at menopause
- Authors
- Becker D, Orr A, Weizman A et al.
- Journal
- Climacteric : the journal of the International Menopause Society
- Year
- 2007
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 110
- What was tested
- None (observational study)
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/13697130601174374
Topics
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