Survey study, 2026
What factors most strongly drive PMS severity in female engineering students?
Stress, poor sleep quality, and academic burnout are the strongest drivers of PMS, together explaining 74% of symptom severity. Exercise and diet also matter but are less influential.
What they did
Cross-sectional study of 150 female engineering students aged 18 to 25 in Hyderabad, India. Participants completed validated questionnaires measuring PMS severity, perceived stress, sleep quality, academic burnout, physical activity, and dietary quality.
What they found
Mean PMS score was 114.2 (SD 20.86), indicating moderate-to-severe symptoms. Very strong positive correlation between PMS severity and perceived stress (ρ=0.852, p<0.001). Strong correlations with poor sleep quality (ρ=0.741), academic burnout (ρ=0.718), low physical activity (ρ=-0.612), and poor dietary quality (ρ=-0.589), all p<0.001. Perceived stress, poor sleep, and academic burnout explained 74% of PMS severity.
What it means for you
Managing stress, sleep, and academic burden could substantially reduce PMS severity in engineering students. Lifestyle changes to exercise and diet may also help. The study is limited to engineering students in one location and is observational, so causation cannot be proven.
74%
of PMS explained by stress, sleep, burnout
0.852
correlation between stress and PMS
114.2
mean PMS score (moderate-severe)
About the study
- Original title
- Premenstrual Syndrome and Its Association with Perceived Stress, Sleep Quality, Academic Burnout, Physical Activity, and Dietary Habits Among Female Engineering Students: A Cross-Sectional Study
- Authors
- Ganaparthi Swathi, Sowjanya Maruboyina
- Journal
- International Journal of Drug Delivery Technology
- Year
- 2026
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 150
- What was tested
- None - this was an observational study
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.25258/ijddt.16.45s.108
Topics
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