Case-control study, 1997
Do current PMDD diagnostic criteria measure what they are supposed to measure?
The study suggests the criteria may be incomplete. It recommends that anger and irritability, depressed mood, and problems with relationships be expanded with more items on symptom checklists.
What they did
Used a statistical method called Rasch analysis to test whether the individual symptom items in the PMDD diagnostic criteria are valid and work well for distinguishing PMDD.
What they found
The analysis identified three key areas that should be expanded: anger and irritability, depressed mood, and interpersonal relationship problems. The recommendation was to add more items to symptom checklists in these areas.
What it means for you
The current PMDD diagnostic criteria may not fully capture important mood and relationship symptoms. The abstract does not say how many women were studied, and this was an analysis of diagnostic criteria rather than research on actual patients.
About the study
- Original title
- Establishing the diagnostic validity of premenstrual dysphoric disorder using rasch analysis
- Authors
- Gehlert S, Chang CH, Hartlage S
- Journal
- Journal of outcome measurement
- Year
- 1997
- Study design
- Case-control study
- What was tested
- None, diagnostic criteria analysis
- Read the paper
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9661712/
Topics
Related studies
Randomised trial, 2023
Does taking sertraline when PMDD symptoms start improve how well women function?
Randomised trial, 2015
Does taking sertraline only when PMDD symptoms start, instead of every day, help?
Randomised trial, 2008
Does the antidepressant escitalopram taken only during the luteal phase reduce PMDD symptoms?
Randomised trial, 2007
Does paroxetine work better if taken daily or just during your luteal phase for PMDD?
Review, 2003
How do menstrual cycle hormones affect the brain and cause mood disorders like PMDD?
Randomised trial, 2003
Are SSRI antidepressants effective for PMDD?