ELEVATED SERUM CHOLESTEROL LEVELS IN WOMEN WITH PREMENSTRUAL DYSPHORIC DISORDER

Objectives: To study the association of premenstrual serum total cholesterol level (TC) with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). Method: The premenstrual serum cholesterol levels of 34 patients with PMDD and 20 normal controls were measured, and the rates of hypercholesterolemia in the 2 groups were compared. Results: The mean of the premenstrual cholesterol level of the study group was 180.82 +/- 34.47 mg/dL, while that of the control group was 162.45 +/- 21.29 mg/dL (t = 2.152, df = 52, p = 0.036). The prevalence of premenstrual hypercholesterolemia (serum total cholesterol > 200 mg/dL) was 23.53% (8/34) in the PMDD group and zero in the normal control group (chi-square = 5.524, df = 1, p = 0.019). Conclusion: The results showed elevated premenstrual serum cholesterol in PMDD and implied a new direction of research to further explore the etiology of PMDD. It is suggested that the pathophysiology of premenstrual dysphoric disorder may be similar to that of anxiety disorders. (Int'l. J. Psychiatry in Medicine 2011;42:85-92)