Context: Over the years, different hypotheses involving the ovarian steroid hormones have been proposed to explain the luteal phase occurrence of severe PMS symptoms. Although, it had been strongly suspected that differences in the concentrations of the ovarian steroids may underlie the mood and psychological imbalance of this disorder, the evidence for this hypothesis has been inconsistent and remains controversial.

Objective: Our objective was to measure the ovarian steroid hormones across the menstrual cycle in women with and without luteal phase symptoms consistent with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD).

Design: We measured estradiol, progesterone, and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) in women with and without PMDD using a cross-sectional and prospective experimental design. Participating women underwent 2 months of self assessment symptom screening and one month of hormonal evaluation.

Results: Overall means for LH, progesterone, E2, peak E2, and free E2 were not different between groups. Across the menstrual cycle, overall %free E2 was significantly lower and SHBG significantly greater in the PMDD group compared to controls (1.39± 0.26 vs. 1.50± 0.28 vs. p= 0.03; 61.4± 25.1 vs. 52.4 ± 21.3 nmol/L, p=0.046, respectively). During the luteal phase, free E2 was significantly lower in the PMDD group compared to controls (PMDD 7.6 ± 7.0 vs. controls 8.9 ± 8.4 pmol/L, p=0.032). For both follicular and luteal phases, SHBG was significantly higher in the PMDD group (follicular phase 60.5± 31.7 vs. 51.4± 38.2 nmol/L, p= 0.047; luteal phase 65.1 ± 32.3 vs. 55.1± 38.9 nmol/L, p=0.03). In both groups, SHBG significantly increased from the follicular to luteal phase.

Conclusions: Luteal phase concentrations of free E2, %free E2 and SHBG differ significantly between women with and without PMDD.