Cohort study, 2007
Do women with depression or bipolar disorder experience premenstrual mood symptoms?
67.7% of women with major depression or bipolar disorder reported premenstrual mood symptoms, significantly more than women without mood disorders. The rates were similar between the two diagnoses.
What they did
2524 women with major depression or bipolar I disorder answered standardized questions about mood symptoms before menstruation, within a month of childbirth, and during perimenopause. Lifetime rates for each symptom type were calculated and odds ratios determined to see if different types of symptoms correlated.
What they found
Of 2524 women with mood disorders, 67.7% reported premenstrual symptoms. Of those at risk, 20.9% reported postpartum mood changes and 26.4% reported perimenopausal mood changes. Rates did not differ between women with major depression and bipolar I disorder but were significantly different from women who were never ill. In major depression, symptoms were significantly correlated with odds ratios from 1.66 to 1.82. These correlations were not found in bipolar disorder.
What it means for you
Women with depression often experience mood changes linked to reproductive events across their lifespan, while this pattern differs in bipolar disorder, suggesting different underlying biology. The main limitation is that women reported past symptoms from memory, which can be inaccurate. This was a secondary analysis of data collected for other purposes.
2524
women with mood disorders
67.7%
reported premenstrual mood symptoms
1.66-1.82
odds ratios for symptom correlation in depression
About the study
- Original title
- Reproductive cycle-associated mood symptoms in women with major depression and bipolar disorder
- Authors
- Payne JL, Roy PS, Murphy-Eberenz K et al.
- Journal
- Journal of affective disorders
- Year
- 2007
- Study design
- Cohort study
- Participants
- 2,524
- What was tested
- None (observational retrospective analysis)
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2006.08.013
Topics
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