Association between Premenstrual Symptoms and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms by COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study with Japanese High School Students

Association between Premenstrual Symptoms and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms by COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study with Japanese High School Students

Takashi Takeda,¹ Sayaka Kai¹ and Kana Yoshimi¹

¹Division of Women’s Health, Research Institute of Traditional Asian Medicine, Kindai University, Osaka-Sayama, Osaka, Japan

COVID-19 has caused an unprecedented global pandemic. Premenstrual symptoms include mood-related, behavioral, and physical symptoms that are limited to the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Psychosocial stress is a risk factor for premenstrual symptoms. The aim of this study was to examine the association between premenstrual symptoms and stress caused by COVID-19. We analyzed data from 871 students with regular menstrual cycles who completed the Premenstrual Symptoms Questionnaire (PSQ), Fear of COVID-19 Scale, and Impact of Event Scale-Revised version (IES-R). The total PSQ score was significantly higher in women with COVID-19-induced posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) than in non-PTSS groups. Compared with pre-pandemic data (2019), the total PSQ score did not change in non-PTSS, but increased in PTSS groups. All symptoms were more severe in PTSS groups than in non-PTSS groups. Compared with 2019, PTSS groups had more severe symptoms for all symptoms except ‘physical symptoms’ and ‘decreased social activity’, and non-PTSS groups only exhibited improvements in the ‘decreased social activity’. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the IES-R score was a significant exacerbation factor of the total PSQ score, along with age and menstrual pain. This study revealed the association between pandemic-associated PTSS and the severity of premenstrual symptoms.

Keywords —— adolescents; pandemic; posttraumatic stress symptoms; premenstrual disorders; premenstrual symptoms questionnaire

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Tohoku J. Exp. Med 2021, 255, 71-77.

Correspondence: Takashi Takeda, Division of Women’s Health, Research Institute of Traditional Asian Medicine, Kindai University, 77-2 Ohno-Higashi, Osaka-Sayama, Osaka 589-8511, Japan.

e-mail: take@med.kindai.ac.jp