We found little evidence to support a role for diet in PMSx reporting. However, alcohol intake was positively associated with premenstrual anxiety and mood changes, and active and passive smoke exposure was associated with a number of PMSx. Ethnic differences in symptom reporting and associations of comorbidities, early perimenopausal status, depressive symptoms, and symptom sensitivity with reported PMSx were also observed.

Background: About 80% of women experience premenstrual symptoms (PMSx), and about 50% of women seek medical care for them, posing a large medical care burden. However, despite women's use of antiinflammatory agents for relief from these symptoms, and the fact that anti-inflammatory agents provide relief from some PMSx, the relationship of inflammation to PMSx has not been well investigated. Methods: We, therefore, undertook the present cross-sectional analyses using baseline data from the longitudinal Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN), a racially/ethnically diverse cohort of midlife women (n = 2939), to determine if a biomarker of inflammation, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), was associated with PMSx. We performed factor analyses with Varimax rotations to determine five groupings of eight symptoms to develop a parsimonious set of outcome variables. We conducted backward stepwise multiple logistic regression models for each grouping, eliminating non-significant ( p > 0.05) covariates. Results: Having an hs-CRP level >3 mg/L was significantly positively associated with premenstrual mood symptoms (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.27, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.02-1.58), abdominal cramps/ back pain (aOR = 1.40, 95% CI 1.09-1.80), appetite cravings/weight gain/bloating (aOR = 1.41, 95% CI 1.04-1.89), and breast pain (aOR = 1.26, 95% CI 1.02-1.55). Elevated hs-CRP level was not associated with premenstrual headaches or reporting three or more PMSx. Conclusions: The significant relationships of specific groups of PMSx with elevated hs-CRP levels have potential clinical implications for treatment and possibly for prevention by advising women about the factors associated with inflammation and the potential for treatment with anti-inflammatory agents.

Elevated beta EEG power in late perimenopausal and postmenopausal women provides an objective measure of disturbed sleep quality in these women. Elevated beta EEG activity suggests that arousal level during sleep is higher in these women.

Women who work in silicon wafer fabrication rooms (fabs) have been reported to have an increased risk of spontaneous abortion (SAB). Although previous studies have included only clinically recognized SABs, more than two-thirds of SABs may be clinically unrecognized. To determine whether fab work is associated with SAB, we recruited 152 fab and 25 1 nonfab workers, who collected urine samples for a 6-month period. Samples

To investigate a possible effect of reduced fecundability (probability of conception per menstrual cycle) among women who fabricate silicon wafers, 152 fabrication-room (fab) and 251 nonfab workers were followed for an average of five menstrual cycles. Daily urine samples were analyzed to confirm clinical spontaneous abortions (SABs) and early fetal losses (EFLs).