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  • Title: Is there evidence of an association between postnatal distress and premenstrual symptoms?
    Author: Haywood A, Slade P, King H.
    Journal: J Affect Disord; 2007 Apr; 99(1-3):241-5. PubMed ID: 16996139.
    Abstract:
    BACKGROUND: There is a widely held assumption in the literature that a well-established link exists between postnatal depressive and premenstrual symptoms. However, on examination of existing research, certain methodological limitations were identified including inadequate methods of assessment and a heavy reliance upon the retrospective assessment of either postnatal or premenstrual symptoms, giving rise to concern regarding the validity of any conclusions. METHODS: A community sample of 63 women completed a daily menstrual symptom diary for two consecutive months. Women's Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale score, recorded 1-3 years previously, was provided by their Health Visitor. RESULTS: Only one participant showed evidence of both postnatal and premenstrual distress when using an EPDS cut-off of >12 and defined criteria for premenstrual symptom assessment. When scores were treated as a continuum, there was no association between postnatal distress and psychological premenstrual symptoms and only a trend towards significance between postnatal distress and physical premenstrual symptoms. LIMITATIONS: Due to the recruitment method, there is some uncertainty regarding the overall response rate. Although this was not a large sample, it compares favourably with many other studies where daily data are collected. The particular focus was examining whether postnatal depressive symptoms predict premenstrual distress (not vice versa). CONCLUSIONS: This study found little evidence to support the widely held assumption of a clear relationship between postnatal distress and premenstrual symptoms.
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