Association of asthma and allergy history with premenstrual symptom severity in young adult women

Abstract

Background

Premenstrual disorders (PMDs) impact quality of life, increase morbidity, and impair school and work performance, affecting approximately 15–20 % of women of reproductive age. Chronic inflammation has been hypothesized to contribute to the development of PMDs and premenstrual symptoms. However, to our knowledge, few studies have studied the potential associations between premenstrual symptoms and inflammation-related conditions, specifically asthma and eczema.

Methods

We investigated the relationship of asthma and eczema with premenstrual symptom severity and PMS risk among 414 women aged 18–31. We used a modified version of the Calendar of Premenstrual Experiences to assess menstrual symptom score. Participants self-reported history of asthma and eczema, as well as their behavioral, dietary, and medical history. A sample of participants (n = 287) provided blood samples to evaluate inflammatory factor levels.

Results

We observed significant positive associations between history of asthma (n = 98) and mean total symptom and physical symptom scores. In adjusted analyses, mean total symptom scores were 2.68 (SE = 1.3) points higher among women with asthma than without (P = 0.04). Mean total symptom scores were 4.8 points higher for women reporting both asthma and eczema (n = 36) than those reporting neither condition (n = 256; P = 0.04).

Limitations

The cross-sectional study design does not allow us to establish how the timing of asthma onset is related to the timing of premenstrual symptoms.

Conclusions

Our results provide support for a relationship between asthma and premenstrual symptoms. More research is needed to understand whether allergic and other inflammatory conditions share common etiology with PMDs.