title: The meaning of menorrhagia: an investigation into the association between the complaint of menorrhagia and depression.
abstract: Although it is generally assumed that the complaint of menorrhagia indicates gynaecological pathology, there is evidence to suggest that it can also be a manifestation of psychological disturbance. In order to investigate this hypothesis 50 women with this complaint were assessed by means of a semi-structured interview, General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ), and blood investigations (haemoglobin and serum iron). The main finding was that 31/50 women had positive GHQ screening (GHQ+) and features consistent with mild to moderate depression. The tendency for the GHQ+ women to have evidence of less severe menstrual bleeding and greater psychological vulnerability is consistent with the original hypothesis and implies that further research in this area is warranted.
mesh_terms: D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006452:Hemoglobinometry; D006801:Humans; D007501:Iron / Q000097:blood; D008016:Life Change Events; D008595:Menorrhagia / Q000523:psychology*; D010551:Personality
chemical_list: D007501:Iron