--- title: How can doctors reliably diagnose PMDD using a standardized method? description: A new scoring system called C-PASS accurately diagnoses PMDD when women track their symptoms daily for two or more months, matching expert clinician diagnoses url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/toward-the-reliable-diagnosis-of-dsm-5-premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-the-2017/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - How can doctors reliably diagnose PMDD using a standardized method? Cohort study, 2017 # How can doctors reliably diagnose PMDD using a standardized method? A new scoring system called C-PASS accurately diagnoses PMDD when women track their symptoms daily for two or more months, matching expert clinician diagnoses 98% of the time. Moderate study design 200 women with reported premenstrual emotional symptoms who completed 2 to 4 months of daily symptom tracking. ## What they did Researchers created a scoring system (C-PASS) that turns daily symptom ratings into a PMDD diagnosis. They tested it on 200 women who reported premenstrual emotional symptoms by comparing C-PASS diagnosis to diagnoses made by expert clinicians. ## What they found C-PASS diagnosis matched expert clinical diagnosis 98% of the time. Women's memory of how bad their premenstrual symptoms were (guessing without daily tracking) was a poor predictor of whether they actually had PMDD. ## What it means for you This provides a clear, standardized way to diagnose PMDD that reduces confusion in research and clinical practice. It may help doctors diagnose PMDD more consistently. The main limit is that the study was relatively small and involved women specifically recruited for having premenstrual emotional symptoms, so findings may not apply to all women seeking a PMDD diagnosis. 200 Women evaluated 98% Correct diagnosis rate 2-4 months Duration of daily tracking ## About the study Original title Toward the Reliable Diagnosis of DSM-5 Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder: The Carolina Premenstrual Assessment Scoring System (C-PASS) Authors Eisenlohr-Moul TA, Girdler SS, Schmalenberger KM et al. Journal The American journal of psychiatry Year 2017 Study design Cohort study What was tested C-PASS diagnostic scoring system Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2016.15121510](https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2016.15121510) ## 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/) 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 Cohort study, 2026 What genetic factors are linked to premenstrual symptoms? Systematic review, 2026 How often do mood disorders and PMS or PMDD occur together? Systematic review, 2026 Does vitamin D supplementation help PMS symptoms? Study, 2026 How do women with PMDD process emotions differently in their brains? Systematic review, 2026 Why do some women experience mood changes linked to their menstrual cycle? Systematic review, 2026 How much of PMDD treatment improvement comes from placebo effect? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗