Women who experience significant premenstrual symptoms differ in the extent to which these symptoms cause cyclical impairment. This study clarifies the type and number of symptoms that best predict premenstrual impairment in a sample of women undergoing prospective assessment for premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) in a research setting. Central research goals were to determine (1) which emotional, psychological, and physical symptoms of PMDD are uniquely associated with premenstrual impairment, and (2) how many cyclical symptoms optimally predict the presence of a clinically significant premenstrual elevation of impairment.

A total of 267 naturally cycling women recruited for retrospective report of premenstrual emotional symptoms completed daily symptom reports using the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP) and occupational, recreational, and relational impairment for 1–4 menstrual cycles (N = 563 cycles).

Multilevel regression revealed that emotional, psychological, and physical symptoms differ in their associations with impairment. The core emotional symptoms of PMDD were predictors of impairment, but not after accounting for secondary psychological symptoms, which were the most robust predictors. The optimal number of premenstrual symptoms for predicting clinically significant premenstrual impairment was four.

Results enhance our understanding of the type and number of premenstrual symptoms associated with premenstrual impairment among women being evaluated for PMDD in research contexts. Additional work is needed to determine whether cognitive symptoms should receive greater attention in the study of PMDD, and to revisit the usefulness of the five-symptom diagnostic threshold.

The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence of depressive symptoms in Australian and Japanese populations of community-dwelling older women using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15). In addition, the relationship between lifestyle and health factors and higher ratings of depressive symptoms was also examined to determine if there were culturally consistent risk factors associated with higher depressive symptom scores.

A total of 444 community based women aged between 65 and 77 years completed a depressive symptom measure (GDS-15) and provided information on common lifestyle factors. The Australian sample (n = 222) were drawn from the Women's Healthy Ageing Project and the age-matched, Japanese sample from the Kumamoto Ageing Study of Mental Health (n = 222). The GDS was chosen to; (1) reduce the impact of physical symptoms associated with old age and, (2) reduce the inflation in scores that may result from the Japanese tendency to endorse somatic items more often than Western adults.

Mean GDS total scores were significantly higher for the Japanese population 3.97 ± 3.69 compared with 1.73 ± 2.7 for Australian women. The percentages of women scoring in the normal; mild and moderate ranges for depression were 91, 7 and 2% for Australia and 67, 24 and 9% for Japan. Scores remained significantly higher for the Japanese cohort when controlling for lifestyle and health factors associated with depression. The analysis of lifestyle and health characteristics showed that the greatest difference between cohorts was in the area of living status, with more Australian women living with their partner and more than three times as many Japanese women living with their children. When the data for the countries was considered independently employment status affected the likelihood of higher depression scores in the Australian sample while heart disease and poor sleep impacted the risk for the Japanese population.

Significantly more Japanese women scored within the mild and moderate ranges on the GDS compared with their Australian peers, even when controlling for possible confounding factors. Of the lifestyle and health factors assessed in this analysis no single variable was a common risk factor for higher depressive scores for both countries. The presence of cultural influences that may impact the risk of experiencing depressive symptoms, and culture specific patterns of item endorsement on depressive symptom measures, needs to be explored in more detail.

Increasing attention is being focused on the needs of vulnerable populations during humanitarian emergency response. Vulnerable populations are those groups with increased susceptibility to poor health outcomes rendering them disproportionately affected by the event. This discussion focuses on women's health needs during the disaster relief effort after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

The Emergency Department (ED) of the temporary mobile encampment in L'Hôpital de l'Université d'Etat d'Haïti (HUEH) was the site of the team's disaster relief mission. In February 2010, most of the hospital was staffed by foreign physicians and nurses, with a high turnover rate. Although integration with local Haitian staff was encouraged, implementation of this practice was variable. Common presentations in the ED included infectious diseases, traumatic injuries, chronic disease exacerbations, and follow-up care of post-earthquake injuries and infections. Women-specific complaints included vaginal infections, breast pain or masses, and pregnancy-related concerns or complications. Women were also targets of gender-based violence.

Recent disasters in Haiti, Pakistan, and elsewhere have challenged the international health community to provide gender-balanced health care in suboptimal environments. Much room for improvement remains. Although the assessment team was gender-balanced, improved incorporation of Haitian personnel may have enhanced patient trust, and improved cultural sensitivity and communication. Camp geography should foster both patient privacy and security during sensitive examinations. This could have been improved upon by geographically separating men's and women's treatment areas and using a barrier screen to generate a more private examination environment. Women's health supplies must include an appropriate exam table, emergency obstetrical and midwifery supplies, urine dipsticks, and sanitary and reproductive health supplies. A referral system must be established for patients requiring a higher level of care. Lastly, improved inter-organization communication and promotion of resource pooling may improve treatment access and quality for select gender-based interventions.

Simple, inexpensive modifications to disaster relief health care settings can dramatically reduce barriers to care for vulnerable populations.

BloemCM, MillerAC. Disasters and Women's Health: Reflections from the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti. Prehosp Disaster Med.2013;28(2):1-5.

The current longitudinal study examined the developmental patterns of marijuana use and their relationship with subsequent psychological adjustment in a community-based sample of urban African American and Puerto Rican women.

Participants were interviewed five times over a period ranging from adolescence (mean age 14.0 years) to adulthood (mean age 32.5 years). Outcome measures included depressive symptoms, anger/hostility and the presence of a substance use disorder (abuse/dependence).

Three distinct trajectories of marijuana use were identified: non-users, increasers and quitters. Increasers reported higher levels of depressive symptoms and anger/hostility than did non-users and were more likely to meet criteria for a substance use disorder at age 32.5 years.

Our findings indicate that early-starting long-term use of marijuana is associated with psychological maladjustment among women. Prevention efforts should emphasize the long-term cost associated with marijuana use, and that the best psychological health is reported by those who abstain from the drug.

Emergency medical services planners and providers consider the needs of many special populations (infants, elderly, disabled, etc.) during a disaster. However, the critical distinctions in gender-specific care, which are based not only on a woman's physiological makeup, but also within her psychosocial framework should be not overlooked. This research identifies key factors in female-specific care, including: (1) 12 risk factors that affect vulnerability, impact, and exposure; (2) post-traumatic stress disorder and pain; (3) triage and advocacy; and (4) supplies and services.

More than 110 surveys were conducted among post-disaster females in the US and South Africa to obtain critical gender-disaggregated data in health services, aid, resources, and evacuations.

The results support the contention that many gender-sensitive services and supplies were needed in post-disaster care settings, but were inadequate or non-existent.

Research indicates a pattern of gender differentiation in all areas of the disaster process—preparedness, response, impact, risk perception and exposure, recovery, and reconstruction. The research also issues and emphasizes interventions that could significantly reduce pain, suffering, and costs. These research conclusions indicate a dearth of gender-disaggregated data and the need for EMS planners and providers to take a more cognizant and proactive approach to gender-specific care in preparedness, triage, psychosocial needs assessment, aid, and advocacy.

To investigate the role of blood loss and diet in the aetiology of mild iron deficiency (MID) in premenopausal New Zealand women. Mild iron deficiency was defined as low, but not necessarily exhausted, iron stores (i.e. serum ferritin <20 μg/L) in the absence of anaemia (i.e. haemoglobin ≥120 g/L).

Cross-sectional study of a volunteer sample of premenopausal adult women. Information on habitual dietary intakes (using a specially designed and validated computerised iron food frequency questionnaire), health and demographic status, sources of blood loss (including menstrual blood loss estimated using a validated menstrual recall method), contraceptive use, height and weight, haemoglobin, serum ferritin and C-reactive protein were collected.

Dunedin, New Zealand during 1996/1997.

Three hundred and eighty-four women aged 18–40 years.

The characteristics that were associated with an increased risk of MID were: low meat/fish/poultry intake, high menstrual blood loss, recent blood donation, nose bleeds, and low body mass index. The protective factors included shorter duration of menstrual bleeding, and multivitamin–mineral supplement use in the past year.

There are a number of potentially modifiable factors that appear to influence risk of MID. Women with low menstrual blood loss may be able to decrease their risk of MID by increasing their meat/fish/poultry intake, while those with a higher menstrual blood loss may be able to decrease their risk by decreasing their menstrual blood loss, perhaps by changing their method of contraception. Women should be encouraged to maintain a healthy body weight, and those who choose to donate blood, or who experience nose bleeds, should have their iron stores monitored.

This study investigates how lifecourse, immigrant status and acculturation, and neighbourhood of residence influence food purchasing and preparation among low-income women with children, living in the USA. This research sought to understand physical and economic access to food, from both ‘individual’ and ‘community’ perspectives.

This study used qualitative methodology (focus groups) to examine the mechanisms and pathways of food preparation and purchasing within the context of daily life activity for US- and foreign-born women, living in the USA. The study methodology analysed notes and verbatim transcripts, summarised recurring responses and identified new themes in the discussions.

A total of 44 women were purposively sampled from two metropolitan areas in Massachusetts, USA, based on (1) neighbourhood of residence and (2) primary language spoken. All focus groups were conducted in community health centres and community centres co-located with offices of the special supplemental nutritional programme for Women, Infants, and Children.

Analysis of key response themes suggested that scarcity of food and physical access to food purchasing points did not influence food purchasing and preparation as much as (1) limited time for food shopping, cooking and family activities; and (2) challenges in transportation to stores and childcare. The study results demonstrated differing attitudes toward food acquisition and preparation between immigrant and US-born women and between women who lived in two metropolitan areas in the western and eastern regions of the state of Massachusetts, USA.

The findings illustrate ‘hidden’ constraints that need to be captured in measures of physical and economic access and availability of food. US policies and programmes that aim to improve access, availability and diet quality would benefit from considering the social context of food preparation and purchasing, and the residential environments of low-income women and families.