The Difference between Depression and Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on March 31, 2010
A new study addresses premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), a severe mood disorder which affects five to seven percent of all women of reproductive age in the United States.
Unfortunately, the disorder is often misdiagnosed as major depression or other mood disorders.
In the study, PMDD is determined to be a biologically different form of premenstrual syndrome. Women with PMDD who have experienced depression may make up a subset.
The findings are important because they give physicians more reason to search for a more specific diagnosis and could possibly lead to more precise treatments. There currently are few good choices, said Susan Girdler, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine. Girdler led the study…
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