Conditions: Premenstrual Syndrome PMS Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder PMDD Depression
Keywords: Depression Menstrual Cycle Gonadal Steroids Ethinyl Estradiol Drospirenone Menstrually Related Mood Disorder MRMD
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 5
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
This study will determine whether uninterrupted treatment with birth control pills over several menstrual cycles prevents severe premenstrual syndrome (PMDD).

Previous studies have shown that the hormones estrogen and progesterone regulate mood in women with MRMD. This study will use various treatment regimens with birth control pills and placebo (sugar pill) to clarify the relationships among estrogen and progesterone, the menstrual cycle, and mood.

Healthy women between 18 and 45 years of age who menstruate may be eligible for this 15-week study. Candidates are screened with a physical examination, blood and urine tests, an electrocardiogram, and 3 months of symptoms ratings to confirm MRMD.

Participants are randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups. Group 1 takes a birth control pill every day and on three occasions takes a placebo capsule. Group 2 takes a birth control pill most but not all days and on three occasions takes a placebo capsule. Group 3 takes a birth control pill every day and on three occasions takes another medication called CDB-2914 that causes menstrual bleeding to occur.

Participants come to the NIH clinic every other week for blood tests and measurement of vital signs (blood pressure, pulse, and temperature) and to complete symptoms ratings scales. Subjects who develop breakthrough bleeding (menstruation earlier than expected) will have a transvaginal ultrasound. For this procedure, a probe is inserted into the vagina for about 10 minutes. The probe gives off and receives sound waves that can be used to form a picture of the endometrium (lining of the uterus).

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Detailed description:
Results from previous protocols (#90-M-0088 and 92-M-0174) have demonstrated that women with menstrually-related mood disorder (MRMD), but not women lacking this disorder, experience mood deterioration within approximately one to two weeks after exposure to either estradiol or progesterone in the context of gonadal suppression (induced by use of the depot gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist leuprolide acetate). Preliminary results of protocol 00-M-0103 suggest that this hormone-induced depression occurs consequent to changes in gonadal steroid levels and not to simple exposure to basal levels above a critical threshold. Additionally, continued administration of hormone for three months resulted in no further symptoms subsequent to the initial precipitated episode. These data suggest the potential therapeutic benefit of extended oral contraceptive (OC) regimens with reduced pill-free intervals in MRMD to minimize the mood destabilizing effects of changing hormone levels. In this protocol we examine whether the effects of 15 weeks of continuous oral contraceptive administration causes a remission of symptoms in women with MRMD.

Arms:
arm 1: Treatment arm # 1 consists of the continuous administration of Yasmin oral contraceptive (a combination of 30 µg of ethinyl estradiol and 3 mg of drospirenone) for 15 weeks starting on day 2 to 5 of the first menstrual cycle. arm 2: Treatment arm # 2 (interrupted Yasmin administration) will be identical to arm # 1 with the exception that the continuous administration of Yasmin will be interrupted by the substitution of placebo for Yasmin for one week during weeks 3, 8, and 14 of the study. The women participating in this treatment arm will experience episodes of menstruation after Yasmin withdrawal (when they are on placebo). arm 3: Yasmin oral contraceptive; CDB 2914 progesterone antagonist. Treatment arm # 3 is identical to treatment arm # 1 with the exception that the continuous administration of Yasmin will also include the administration of progesterone antagonist CDB-2914 during weeks 3, 8, and 14. Menses is anticipated to occur within 2-3 days of CDB-2914 administration. Women in treatment arms # 3 and # 1 will be exposed to continuous levels of Yasmin, but due to the local effects of the progesterone antagonist on the endometrium, women in arm # 3 will experience menses.

Interventions: intervention 1: Ethinyl Estradiol/Drospirenone intervention 2: Placebo intervention 3: CDB 2914
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: Drug administered dependent upon arm. intervention 2: None intervention 3: None

Protocol document: