Premenstrual disorders: epidemiology and disease burden.

Many women of childbearing age experience a variety of symptoms related to the menstrual cycle that may be limited to mild discomfort or extend to premenstrual syndrome or, depending on the degree of emotional and somatic impairment, to the most severe premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). With PMDD, women experience markedly compromised quality of life and ability to function in several settings, leading to higher direct medical costs for increased physician visits and laboratory tests, and higher indirect costs to employers through lower productivity at work. Diagnostic criteria established for premenstrual disorders may now enable physicians to evaluate their patients' complex symptoms more precisely and recommend a form of treatment that can alleviate the original complaint and improve healthcare for women.