Premenstrual Symptoms: Prevalence and Severity in an Adolescent Sample

Purpose: To survey the prevalence and severity of premenstrual symptoms and compare premenstrual symptom clusters of younger (13–15-year-old) and older (16–18-year-old) adolescents, based on both chronological and gynecological age. Methods: Physical, emotional, and behavioral premenstrual symptoms were assessed by self-report using the Premenstrual Assessment Form (PAF), in a sample of 75 adolescents. Analyses were performed to determine differences in premenstrual symptom clusters in younger and older adolescents. Results: The participants had a mean age of 14.8; 96% identified themselves as Caucasian, 3% as African-American, and 1% as Asian. All participants reported at least one premenstrual symptom of minimal severity. Many reported symptoms that they considered moderate (88%), severe (73%), or extreme (56%). The symptoms most commonly reported were food cravings, breast swelling, abdominal discomfort, mood swings, stressed feeling, and dissatisfaction with appearance. Other symptoms, such as missing time at school, becoming violent with people or things, and “thinking of what it would be like to do something to self” (such as crash the car), wishing to go to sleep and not wake up, or having thoughts of death or suicide, were less frequently reported. The younger teens (13–15 years old) had significantly less intense symptoms than the older teens (16–18 years old). Conclusions: Premenstrual symptoms reported as being moderate or greater in severity were found to be quite prevalent (88%) in this sample of adolescents. Specifically those adolescents at 41 months postmenarche or greater reported specifically more intense premenstrual symptoms. In addition, a subset of adolescents expressed that they experienced aberrant behavior and passive suicidal ideations as premenstrual symptoms.