Premenstrual syndrome is associated with altered cortisol awakening response

Figures & data

Table 1. Demographic data and PMS scores of PMS and control group.

	PMS (n = 32)		Control (n = 36)		t
	M	SD	M	SD
Age (years)	22.47	2.20	22.28	2.43	0.34
BMI (kg/m^2)	20.63	3.73	19.28	4.18	1.39
Menarche age (years)	12.59	1.48	12.97	1.21	1.16
Duration of menstrual flow (days)	5.22	0.91	5.31	1.01	0.37
Length of menstrual cycle (days)	29.50	1.98	29.28	3.07	0.35
PMS scores	8.63	3.66	4.64	2.34	5.41*

*p < .001. BMI refers to body mass index, which was calculated as the participant’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of her height in meters (kg/m²⁾. Menarche age refers to the age when menstruation first occurs in a woman’s life. Duration of menstrual flow here refers to the duration of the menstruation in a single menstrual cycle. Length of menstrual cycle here refers to the interval between two consecutive menstrual cycles.

Table 2. Awakening time, sleep duration, and saliva data of the two groups in the mid-follicular phase and the late luteal phase (M ± SD).

	PMS (n = 32)		Control (n = 36)
	Mid-follicular phase	Late luteal phase	Mid-follicular phase	Late luteal phase
Awakening time	7:47 ± 0:48 a.m.	7:39 ± 1:04 a.m.	7:28 ± 1:05 a.m.	7:33 ± 0:51 a.m.
Sleep duration (hours)	7.14 ± 0.55	7.03 ± 1.11	6.47 ± 1.16	7.09 ± 1.12
Estradiol (pg/mL)^a	4.04 ± 2.03	4.93 ± 2.32	3.93 ± 1.52	4.51 ± 2.02
Progesterone (pg/mL)^b	57.73 ± 34.48	126.05 ± 68.14	59.03 ± 60.79	102.56 ± 119.95
Salivary cortisol (ng/mL)^c
T1	7.64 ± 2.13	7.61 ± 2.16	7.81 ± 2.53	7.84 ± 2.55
T2	9.55 ± 3.37	9.92 ± 5.11	11.44 ± 4.48	10.63 ± 3.63
T3	9.07 ± 2.30	9.68 ± 3.29	11.94 ± 3.97	11.09 ± 4.55
T4	8.75 ± 2.49	9.62 ± 2.96	11.24 ± 3.65	10.55 ± 4.74

^aThe reference range was 0.56–16.05 pg/mL for estradiol.

^bThe reference range was 6 to 332.6 pg/mL for progesterone. ^cT1, T2, T3, and T4 refer to 0, 30, 45, and 60 min after awakening.

Figure 1. CAR at 0, 30, 45, and 60 min after awakening during mid-follicular and the late luteal phases in both healthy controls and women with PMS. Error bars represent standard errors. *p < .05 in women with PMS relative to healthy controls at 45 and 60 min after awakening, regardless of the menstrual cycle phases.

Figure 2. Scatterplot and Pearson correlation between the PMS score and AUCi in the mid-follicular phase (r = –0.398, p < .01).