Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Oct;47(5):263-266.
doi: 10.1192/bjb.2022.63.

A case series of premenstrual disorders presenting to the UK's National Female Hormone Clinic

Thomas J Reilly  1   2 , Clare-Louise Knox  3 , Michael S Marsh  2   4 , Michael C Craig  2   5
Affiliations

A case series of premenstrual disorders presenting to the UK's National Female Hormone Clinic

Thomas J Reilly et al. BJPsych Bull. 2023 Oct.

Abstract

Aims and method: We aimed to describe the clinical characteristics of female patients presenting with premenstrual disorders to a tertiary service in the UK. We conducted a retrospective case-note review of referrals to the National Female Hormone Clinic from April 2014 to August 2020. Based on clinical assessment, we determined whether the patient met criteria for premenstrual dysphoric disorder or premenstrual exacerbation of an underlying psychiatric disorder.

Results: Of 146 patients seen in clinic for premenstrual disorders, an ICD-10 psychiatric diagnosis was made in 130 (89.0%); a minority 16 (11.0%) did not have a psychiatric diagnosis. Following assessment, 94 patients (64.4%) met criteria for premenstrual dysphoric disorder and 67 (45.6%) had exacerbation of a psychiatric disorder.

Clinical implications: Patients presenting to this specialist service had complex psychiatric comorbidity; almost half presented with exacerbation of a psychiatric disorder.

Keywords: Menstrual cycle; menstruation disturbances; premenstrual dysphoric disorder; premenstrual syndrome.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

None.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flowchart of all referrals to the National Female Hormone Clinic from its inception in April 2014 to August 2020.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Yonkers KA, Simoni MK. Premenstrual disorders. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2018; 218: 68–74. - PubMed
    1. Hartlage SA. Differentiating premenstrual dysphoric disorder from premenstrual exacerbations of other disorders: a methods dilemma. Clin Psychol Sci Pract 2001; 8: 242–53.
    1. Jang D, Elfenbein HA. Menstrual cycle effects on mental health outcomes: a meta-analysis. Arch Suicide Res 2019; 23: 312–32. - PubMed
    1. Green LJ, O'Brien PMS, Panay N, Craig M. Management of premenstrual syndrome: green-top guideline No. 48. BJOG 2017; 124: e73–e105. - PubMed
    1. Teatero ML, Mazmanian D, Sharma V. Effects of the menstrual cycle on bipolar disorder. Bipolar Disord 2014; 16: 22–36. - PubMed