A positive family history of alcohol problems (FHP) has been associated with an increased risk for problem drinking (PD) in women. Comorbid affective and somatic symptoms have also been associated with increased PD risk, which has generated interest in the study of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and quantity/frequency of alcohol use. Studies of PMS and drinking have yielded inconsistent results, and little is known about PMS symptomatology in combination with other risk factors (e.g., FHP). The proposed research seeks to better understand the relationship between FHP and PMS symptom severity and risk for PD in college females. Study 1 will establish prevalence rates for various PD risk factors and examine the extent to which such factors correlate with quantity/frequency measures of recent alcohol use. Study 1 will also facilitate identification of women with specific risk factors (e.g., FHP), needed for Study 2 subject recruitment. The purpose of Study 2 is to examine potential interactions between FHP and PMS symptom severity and alcohol consumption across the menstrual cycle. Using a prospective, cross-sectional case-control design, Study 2 will examine variability in alcohol use across the menstrual cycle during a 6-week rating period. We hypothesize that women with both FHP and severe PMS symptomatology will report greater increases in alcohol consumption than the other 3 groups of women. Such findings would offer support for interventions targeted specifically at this high-risk subgroup of women
| Perry, Bridget L; Miles, Donna; Burruss, Karen et al. (2004) Premenstrual symptomatology and alcohol consumption in college women. J Stud Alcohol 65:464-8 |
