Effect of Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy on Health-Related Quality of Life in Females With Premenstrual Syndrome

BACKGROUND: The premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is characterized by intense physical and psychological changes. The most common symptoms include anxiety, depression, fatigue, anger, irritability, sense of being out of control, confusion, change in appetite and sleep, bloating and breast tenderness. The symptoms affect the quality of life of women, and cause impairment in many aspects of life. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) on improvement of health-related quality of life in female students with premenstrual syndrome (PMS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, 40 students with PMS were selected from Shahid Chamran university in Tehran, Iran, and were randomly assigned to the intervention and control groups. Participants in the intervention group received 10 sessions of CBT. Women in the control group did not receive any treatment. RESULTS: The results of ANCOVA were statistically significant (P < 0.001), and showed that group CBT improved the quality of life in the experimental group compared to the control group. In addition, the effects of the intervention on quality of life lasted for 2 months. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive-behavioral therapy can be effective in improvement of health-related quality of life of female students with PMS.