Clin Exp Reprod Med.  2014 Jun;41(2):62-67. 10.5653/cerm.2014.41.2.62.

Is catechol-o-methyltransferase gene polymorphism a risk factor in the development of premenstrual syndrome?

• Deveci EO
• Incebiyik
• Selek S
• Camuzcuoglu A
• Hilali NG
• Camuzcuoglu H
• Erdal ME
• Vural M

• KMID: 2049066
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5653/cerm.2014.41.2.62

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to investigate whether there was a correlation between catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) gene polymorphism, which is believed to play a role in the etiology of psychotic disorders, and premenstrual syndrome (PMS).
METHODS
Fifty-three women with regular menstrual cycles, aged between 18 and 46 years and diagnosed with PMS according to the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology criteria were included in this study as the study group, and 53 healthy women having no health problems were selected as the controls. Venous blood was collected from all patients included in the study and kept at -18degrees C prior to analysis.
RESULTS
There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of demographic features such as age, body mass index, number of pregnancies, parity, and number of children. No statistically significant difference was observed in terms of COMT gene polymorphism (p=0.61) between women in the PMS and the control groups. However, a significant difference was found between arthralgia, which is an indicator of PMS, and low-enzyme activity COMT gene (Met/Met) polymorphism (p=0.04).
CONCLUSION
These results suggested that there was no significant relationship between PMS and COMT gene polymorphism. Since we could not find a direct correlation between the COMT gene polymorphism and PMS, further studies including alternative neurotransmitter pathways are needed to find an effective treatment for this disease.

Keyword

Catechol-o-methyltransferase; Etiology; Neurotransmitter; Premenstrual syndrome

MeSH Terms

Arthralgia
Body Mass Index
Catechol O-Methyltransferase*
Child
Female
Gynecology
Humans
Menstrual Cycle
Neurotransmitter Agents
Obstetrics
Parity
Pregnancy
Premenstrual Syndrome*
Psychotic Disorders
Risk Factors*
Catechol O-Methyltransferase
Neurotransmitter Agents