--- title: Do women with PMDD panic as easily when breathing carbon dioxide as people with panic disorder? description: Yes. Women with PMDD showed panic attacks when breathing carbon dioxide at rates similar to people with panic disorder, and higher than people without these c url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/specificity-of-panic-response-to-co-2-inhalation-in-panic-disorder-a-comparison-2001/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Do women with PMDD panic as easily when breathing carbon dioxide as people with panic disorder? Study, 2001 # Do women with PMDD panic as easily when breathing carbon dioxide as people with panic disorder? Yes. Women with PMDD showed panic attacks when breathing carbon dioxide at rates similar to people with panic disorder, and higher than people without these conditions. Moderate study design 50 people with panic disorder, 21 with depression, 10 with PMDD, and 34 without these conditions ## What they did Researchers studied four groups: 50 people with panic disorder, 21 with depression, 10 with PMDD, and 34 normal people. All were asked to breathe in air with 5 percent or 7 percent carbon dioxide. A trained observer watched for panic attacks using standard criteria. Participants rated their anxiety on three scales before and after each test. ## What they found People with panic disorder had the highest rate of panic attacks when breathing carbon dioxide. Women with PMDD had panic rates similar to panic disorder and higher than normal people. Depressed people had panic rates similar to normal people. Seven percent carbon dioxide caused more panic than 5 percent. People who had panic attacks showed similar high anxiety ratings regardless of their diagnosis. ## What it means for you Women with PMDD may be very sensitive to carbon dioxide, similar to people with panic disorder. This suggests that PMDD might share some of the same panic sensitivity mechanisms as panic disorder. The PMDD group was small (10 women), so larger studies are needed to confirm if this applies to all women with PMDD. 10 Women with PMDD studied 50 People with panic disorder 34 Normal control subjects ## About the study Original title Specificity of panic response to CO(2) inhalation in panic disorder: a comparison with major depression and premenstrual dysphoric disorder Authors Kent JM, Papp LA, Martinez JM et al. Journal The American journal of psychiatry Year 2001 Study design Study Participants 50 What was tested Breathing air with 5 percent or 7 percent carbon dioxide Read the paper [doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.158.1.58](https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.158.1.58) ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[Anxiety and tension](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-anxiety/)[Major depressive disorder](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-major-depression/)[Anxiety disorders and OCD](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-anxiety-disorders/) 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 Non-randomised trial, 2008 Can the Sheehan Disability Scale measure whether treatments work? Study, 2026 Do anxiety and depression get worse before your period if you already have a mental health condition? Study, 2026 What are premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder? Review, 2014 Are mental health problems linked to gynecological conditions like PMS and PMDD? Cohort study, 2012 How quickly does fluoxetine start working for PMDD symptoms? Randomised trial, 2004 Does paroxetine controlled-release help PMDD symptoms? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗