Comparison of Marital Satisfaction in Married Women With and Without Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD)

Consistent data on the prevalence and predictors of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) in the general population are lacking. The purpose of this study was determining the relationship between Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), marital satisfaction and specifying determinant role of personal stressors in married women. The design of the study was correlational and the population of the study included 400 Iranian married females in reproductive age who were also employees of 12 Tehran universities, among them 400 persons chosen in the first step through random cluster sampling and in the second step through target sampling. Data were gathered by means of Diagnostic Interview Checklist of PMDD based on Research Criteria of DSM-5; ENRICH marital satisfaction questionnaire and Holmes and Rahe Scale of Life Changes Evaluation. Gathered data analyzed by covariate analysis (ANCOVA), independent-groups T test and Pearson correlation coefficient. Based on the results the difference between the means of marital satisfaction in PMDD group compared with non-PMDD group isn’t statistically significant (t=0.58, df=398). A significant negative relationship was found between the number of the symptoms of PMDD and marital satisfaction scores (Pvalue<0.05), it means as the number of the symptoms increased the scores of the marital satisfaction decreased. A significant negative relationship was found between marital satisfaction and stress level (P<0.05). In other words, as the stress level increased the scores of the marital satisfaction decreased. Based on the results of the covariate analysis, stress level did not influence marital satisfaction of groups with or without PMDD (F=0.59, P=0.44 > 0.05). There was no significant difference between marital satisfaction level in PMDD and non-PMDD groups. However, increasing in symptom numbers associated with decreasing in marital satisfaction scores.