Dimensional (premenstrual symptoms screening tool) vs categorical (mini diagnostic interview, module U) for assessment of premenstrual disorders

BACKGROUND: Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is the constellation of physical and psychological symptoms before menstruation. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a severe form of PMS with more depressive and anxiety symptoms. The Mini international neuropsychiatric interview, module U (MINI-U), assesses the diagnostic criteria for probable PMDD. The Premenstrual Symptoms screening tool (PSST) measures the severity of these symptoms. AIM: To compare the PSST ordinal scores with the corresponding dichotomous MINI-U answers. METHODS: Arab women (n = 194) residing in Doha, Qatar, received the MINI-U and PSST. Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) analyses provided the cut-off scores on the PSST using MINI-U as a gold standard. RESULTS: All PSST ratings were higher in participants with positive responses on MINI-U. In addition, ROC analyses showed that all areas under the curves were significant with the cutoff scores on PSST. CONCLUSION: This study confirms that the severity measures from PSST can recognize patients with moderate/ severe PMS and PMDD who would benefit from immediate treatment.