Premenstrual disorders were not linked to midlife artery disease
A cross-sectional study of 4,405 women aged 50 to 64 found no link between premenstrual disorders and artery plaque or heart disease.
Multicenter
Limit: Past premenstrual disorders were self-reported, making recall errors possible
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In Sweden, 4,405 women aged 50 to 64 participated in a cross-sectional study between 2015 and 2018. Participants completed questionnaires on premenstrual disorders and hot flashes, alongside blood tests, physical exams, and scans of their heart and neck arteries. A history of premenstrual disorders was reported by 23.3% of the participants.
After adjusting for age, lifestyle, and clinical factors, premenstrual disorders showed no association with early artery plaque, present in 1,003 women, or manifest cardiovascular disease, present in 189 women. For coronary artery plaque, the odds ratio was 0.91, and the range of likely values included no difference. For manifest cardiovascular disease, the odds ratio was 1.12, and the range also included no difference. Women with past premenstrual disorders had larger waist circumferences, higher rates of high blood pressure, and more frequent hot flashes. The study found no clear differences in diabetes or high blood fats.
Why it matters
Cardiovascular disease risk increases as women age, and reproductive history may offer a window into long-term heart and vessel health. The results help researchers understand how metabolic vulnerabilities develop across the female life course.
Caveats
Because the study was cross-sectional and relied on questionnaires to report premenstrual history, it cannot show cause or track risk over time. The results apply only to Swedish women aged 50 to 64, and they were presented in a conference abstract rather than a full study.
- Premenstrual disorders
- Diabetes
- Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease
- Coronary atherosclerosis
- Coronary heart disease
- Humans
