Assessment of vitamin-D levels in premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder

Objective: To evaluate the vitamin D levels in patients with premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) Design: Cross-sectional study Setting: Obstetrics and Gynecology outpatient clinics, Acibadem Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey Subjects: The study population included 125 women aged 18-47 years who presented with various complaints and regular menstrual cycle. A control group was formed of 159 premenopausal women without premenstrual symptoms. Intervention: Serum samples were tested during the luteal phase of menstrual cycle Main Outcome Measure: Study groups were formed as none/mild PMS; moderate to severe PMS; PMDD group by using the premenstrual symptoms screening tool, and a control group; biochemical analyses of serum 25(OH)D-3 (vitamin D) were performed using the electrochemiluminescence immunoassay method. Results: The mean age of the participants was 30.52 +/- 6.44 years. The distributions of diagnoses were 51.2%, 33.6% and 15.2% in the PMS none/mild, the PMS moderate/severe, and the PMDD group, respectively. Vitamin D levels were found as sufficient (>= 20 ng/dL) in 46.2%, deficient (10-20 ng/dL) in 43%, and severely deficient (<10 ng/dL) in 10.7% of the control group, and in the patient group these rates were non-deficient in 13.4%, deficient in 27.7%, and severely deficient in 58.7%. Conclusions: The study showed that vitamin D levels were significantly lower in the study patients compared with the control group. Although the vitamin D level was lower in the PMS groups than in the PMDD group, the difference did not reach statistical significance. Further studies are needed to elucidate the exact role of vitamin D in PMS/PMDD.