--- title: Do vaginal progesterone suppositories relieve PMS symptoms? | Niyora description: Overall PMS scores were not significantly better with progesterone than placebo, but a specific group of 'nervous' symptoms, tension, mood swings, irritabilit url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/efficacy-of-progesterone-vaginal-suppositories-in-alleviation-of-nervous-1995/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Do vaginal progesterone suppositories relieve PMS symptoms? Randomised trial, 1995 # Do vaginal progesterone suppositories relieve PMS symptoms? Overall PMS scores were not significantly better with progesterone than placebo, but a specific group of 'nervous' symptoms, tension, mood swings, irritability, anxiety and lack of control, did improve significantly. Moderate study design Reproductive-age women with moderate to severe PMS (25 enrolled, 17 completed the 7-month trial). ## What they did Double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 25 women with moderate to severe PMS; 17 completed 7 months of 200 mg progesterone vaginal suppositories (twice daily) or placebo. Symptoms were rated with the Spielberger, Beck and Hamilton scales, monthly psychiatrist interviews, ovulation charts and blood hormone tests. ## What they found Hormone levels (including beta endorphin, progesterone, FSH, LH, estradiol and prolactin) showed no differences between the treatment and placebo groups. Overall scores across all rating tools were not significantly different between groups. However, within the 'nervous symptoms' subcategory, there was a significant improvement in tension, mood swings, irritability, anxiety and lack of control with progesterone. ## What it means for you Progesterone metabolites may have a calming (anxiolytic) effect that helps specific anxiety-related PMS symptoms, even though it didn't improve PMS symptoms overall. The study was very small (only 17 of 25 enrolled women completed it), so results need confirming in larger trials, and it's unclear which women benefit most. 25 Women enrolled 17 Women who completed trial 7 months Trial duration ## About the study Original title Efficacy of progesterone vaginal suppositories in alleviation of nervous symptoms in patients with premenstrual syndrome Authors Baker ER, Best RG, Manfredi RL et al. Journal Journal of assisted reproduction and genetics Year 1995 Study design Randomised trial Participants 25 What was tested 200 mg progesterone vaginal suppositories, twice daily, versus placebo, for 7 months. Read the paper [doi.org/10.1007/bf02211800](https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02211800) ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Anxiety and tension](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-anxiety/)[Irritability and anger](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-irritability-anger/)[Estradiol, progesterone and hormone therapy](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-hormone-therapy/)[Neurosteroids (allopregnanolone)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-neurosteroids/)[Pregnancy and postpartum](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-postpartum/)[Work and productivity](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-work/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Survey study, 2009 Why do some women feel depressed or anxious when progesterone increases before their period? Review, 2003 How do menstrual cycle hormones affect the brain and cause mood disorders like PMDD? Randomised trial, 2021 Does ulipristal acetate help premenstrual dysphoric disorder? Randomised trial, 2017 Does Sepranolone reduce symptoms of severe premenstrual syndrome (PMDD)? Case-control study, 2026 What role do brain chemicals called neurosteroids play in PMDD? Randomised trial, 2023 Does a smartphone app for heart rate variability biofeedback reduce premenstrual and depressive symptoms? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗