Prevalence of premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder in Japanese women

To investigate the prevalence and impact of premenstrual symptoms in Japanese women, we developed the PSQ "The Premenstrual Symptoms Questionnaire" for the screening of premenstrual symptoms. The PSQ translates DSM-IV criteria into a rating scale with degrees of severity. One thousand one hundred and eighty-seven Japanese women between the ages of 20 and 49 yrs, who were seen at a clinic for uterine cancer screening, were assessed regarding their premenstrual symptoms using the PSQ. As many as 95% of these women were found to suffer from premenstrual symptoms. The rates of prevalence of moderate to severe PMS and PMDD in Japanese women were 5.3 and 1.2%, respectively, which are lower than those in Western women. Only 5.3% of women with moderate to severe PMS and PMDD were treated. The results of this study suggest that race and ethnicity influence the expression of premenstrual symptoms and that the current state of medical care for Japanese women with moderate to severe PMS and PMDD is not satisfactory.