title: The Association of Inflammation with Premenstrual Symptoms.
abstract: About 80% of women experience premenstrual symptoms (PMSx), and about 50% of women seek medical care for them, posing a large medical care burden. However, despite women's use of anti-inflammatory agents for relief from these symptoms, and the fact that anti-inflammatory agents provide relief from some PMSx, the relationship of inflammation to PMSx has not been well investigated.
  
  
  
  We, therefore, undertook the present cross-sectional analyses using baseline data from the longitudinal Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN), a racially/ethnically diverse cohort of midlife women (n = 2939), to determine if a biomarker of inflammation, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), was associated with PMSx. We performed factor analyses with Varimax rotations to determine five groupings of eight symptoms to develop a parsimonious set of outcome variables. We conducted backward stepwise multiple logistic regression models for each grouping, eliminating non-significant (p > 0.05) covariates.
  
  
  
  Having an hs-CRP level >3 mg/L was significantly positively associated with premenstrual mood symptoms (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.27, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.02-1.58), abdominal cramps/back pain (aOR = 1.40, 95% CI 1.09-1.80), appetite cravings/weight gain/bloating (aOR = 1.41, 95% CI 1.04-1.89), and breast pain (aOR = 1.26, 95% CI 1.02-1.55). Elevated hs-CRP level was not associated with premenstrual headaches or reporting three or more PMSx.
  
  
  
  The significant relationships of specific groups of PMSx with elevated hs-CRP levels have potential clinical implications for treatment and possibly for prevention by advising women about the factors associated with inflammation and the potential for treatment with anti-inflammatory agents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Sciences, School of Medicine, University of California Davis , Davis, California.
authors.forename: Ellen B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Gold
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Sciences, School of Medicine, University of California Davis , Davis, California.
authors.forename: Craig
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wells
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health Sciences, School of Medicine, University of California Davis , Davis, California.
authors.forename: Marianne O'Neill
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Rasor
mesh_terms: D015746:Abdominal Pain; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D001066:Appetite; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000150:complications*; D016015:Logistic Models; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D059373:Mastodynia; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011293:Premenstrual Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D016387:Women's Health
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D002097:C-Reactive Protein