Challenges and Response to Body Integrity

This article discusses the pathophysiology and treatment of Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) and Polycystic Syndrome. It covers the common causes of PMS, clinical manifestation of both syndromes, and therapies and lifestyle changes to help with PMS Syndrome. The article also includes a case study of a woman with PMS symptoms. References are provided for further reading.

Running Head: CHALLENGES AND RESPONSE TO BODY INTEGRITY 0
Challenge and Response to Body Integrity
9/2/2018

CHALLENGES AND RESPONSE TO BODY INTEGRITY 1
Contents
Q1. Pathophsiology of Premenstrual Syndrome and relation to Tracey’s
symptoms..............................................................................................................2
Q2. Common causes of Premenstrual Syndrome................................................2
Q3. Clinical manifestation of Polycystic syndrome and Premenstrual syndrome3
Q4. Therapies and lifestyle changes to help with PMS Syndrome......................4
References.............................................................................................................5

CHALLENGES AND RESPONSE TO BODY INTEGRITY 2
Q1. Pathophsiology of Premenstrual Syndrome and relation to Tracey’s symptoms
Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) is a commonly known health issue and has wide variety of
symptoms and effects on the health of the women. Premenstrual syndrome is a condition that
affects the women emotions, physical health, and the behaviour during the days of menstrual
cycle. It is generally referred to as the period or days before the occurrence of menstruation.
The problem is observed to affect almost 85% of the women in the phase of menstruation. It
has been found that it starts from 5 to 11 days before the cycle, and tends to end once the
cycle begins. The cause of the syndrome is unknown, but many researches believed that they
are the result of change in the sex hormones (Imai et al., 2015).
The pathophysiology of the PMS is stated as the syndrome and the dysphoric disorder
are both stimulated by the hormonal events which ensue after ovulation (Qiao et.al, 2017).
The symptoms of the disorder can begin in the early, mid or the later phase and these are not
related to the specific contraction of any gonadal or non-gonadal syndrome. It has also been
found that lowering of the serotonin can give rise to the PMS-like symptom (Perlman & Kjer,
2016).
With the context to the case study, Tracey Wilson, a 38-year old women faced
number of symptoms such as bloating, breast tenderness, mood swings (anger and
depression), acne , and others. Therefore, these are the symptoms that relates to the changes
in the hormones or hormonal abnormality leading to the premenstrual syndrome as the
symptoms and effects on the health of the women leads to the illness for longer term
impacting their reproductive system (Jang, Kim & Choi, 2014). Eating food in smaller
quantity, reducing the salt intake, more frequent meals will reduce blotting and fullness as it
relates to the case of the Tracey. The case study also depicted the removal of the ovarian cyst
in the body of Tracey’s which indicates about the situation represented in this syndrome.
Q2. Common causes of Premenstrual Syndrome
Premenstrual syndrome leads to the critical condition sometimes, as the physical pain
and the emotional stress are enough to affect the daily lives of women. Therefore, it should be
treated well on time. Thus, there are some common causes of the syndrome, such as clinical
changes in the hormone, chemical changes in the brain, and depression. In addition, it has
been found that the women’s menstrual cycles are controlled by the complex hormone

CHALLENGES AND RESPONSE TO BODY INTEGRITY 3
interaction, leading to the premenstrual syndrome symptoms. PMS includes premenstrual
fluctuations in a brain chemical called as serotonin as one of the common cause of this
syndrome. Some other possible factors leading to the same problem includes lack of certain
vitamins and minerals in the body, consumption of alcohol, caffeine, and the intake of diet
rich in salty foods (Stewart, 2013).
With context to the case study, it has been observed that Tracey had the habits of
smoking and drinking moderately at social events, which is the cause of disturbance in her
menstruation cycle, and other symptoms (Pearlstein & O’Brien, 2017). After the research on
the symptoms and effects of the PMS syndrome on the women’s health, there has been no
certain or particular cause of the problem. It has been connected to the luteal phase, but the
changes in the hormones are considered to be one of the major factors, and the changes in the
hormone levels also affect the occurrence of this situation. Chemical changes in the brain and
the increased stress levels make the situation and symptoms worse. As Tracey’s health
condition reported symptoms such as abdominal bloating, tiredness and nausea, which is the
result of the high sodium/alcohol, or the low levels of vitamins or minerals in the body.
Q3. Clinical manifestation of Polycystic syndrome and Premenstrual syndrome
The clinical manifestation of the difference in the polycystic syndrome and the PMS can
be analysed through an understanding of the role and effect of the polycystic syndrome in the
body of women. Polycystic syndrome refers to the condition of the women’s health that
affects the hormone levels (Safari et al., 2015). It is commonly found to be affecting women
during their childbearing years, specifically. In broader sense, it affects the ovaries in the
women, the production of estrogen, and progesterone i.e. hormones that regulate the
menstrual cycles. In this situation, women secrete the male hormones, known as androgen.
This syndrome is group of three symptoms affecting the ovaries and ovulation. The key
features of the PCOS syndrome are mentioned below (Yen et al., 2018).
 Cysts in the ovaries
 High levels of male hormones
 Irregularity or skipped periods
The case depicted the removal of the ovarian cyst in the body of Tracey’s which indicates
about the situation represented in this syndrome (Perlman & Kjer, 2016). The clinical
manifestation of the PCOS and PMS represents the signs and symptoms of these syndromes

CHALLENGES AND RESPONSE TO BODY INTEGRITY 4
and the effect on the women’s health (Rosenblum & Ekhlaspour, 2017). Polycystic
syndrome’s clinical manifestation varies with the ethnic, racial and the environmental factors.
However, the most commonly observed hormonal abnormalities in PCOS syndrome include
hyperandrogenisim, oligomenorrhea, and polycystic ovaries. The clinical presentations also
represented the problem of menstrual irregularity. Menstrual dysfunction is one of other
clinical features that represent absent or infrequent menstrual bleeding. Premenstrual
syndrome represents the presence of both physical and behavioural symptoms (Kandaraki et
al., 2017).
Q4. Therapies and lifestyle changes to help with PMS Syndrome
The diagnosis and treatment of the premenstrual syndrome is necessary during the
adulthood or the childbearing years of women. Therefore, there are some of the common
therapies related to the premenstrual syndrome which include hormonal contraceptives, anti-
depressants, use of painkillers, diuretics and others. It has been recommended by many
doctors in most cases, changes in the lifestyle can help the women deal with the premenstrual
syndrome (Bäckström & Bäckström, 2016).
Depending on the severity of the problem or symptoms, treatment varies and the
prescription of medications. Amongst all, the most common diuretics, help in the most cases
when the limitation of the salt intake and the exercising does not help to reduce the severity.
Diuretics refers to taking water pills which helps in shedding out the excess fluids from the
kidneys. Spironolactone is one of the diuretics that help, as a hormonal contraceptives stops
ovulation which helps in getting relief from this syndrome. The alternative medicines which
act as therapies can also help, such as vitamin supplements, acupuncture, contributes in the
treatment of the health condition of women (Shoupe, 2017).
A lifestyle change of women can also help contributing to better treatment of this
condition, such as modification in the diet, regular exercise, yoga, intake of nutritious food
and necessary supplements (Ryu & Kim, 2015).

CHALLENGES AND RESPONSE TO BODY INTEGRITY 5
References
Imai, A., Ichigo, S., Matsunami, K. & Takagi, H. (2015). Premenstrual syndrome:
management and pathophysiology. Clinical and experimental obstetrics &
gynecology, 42(2), 123-128.
Jang, S. H., Kim, D. I., & Choi, M. S. (2014). Effects and treatment methods of acupuncture
and herbal medicine for premenstrual syndrome/premenstrual dysphoric disorder:
systematic review. BMC complementary and alternative medicine, 14(1), 11.
Kandaraki, E., Papadakis, G., Tsirona, S., Asimakopoulou, A., Chiotinis, N., Chronopoulou,
G. & Diamanti-Kandarakis, E. (2017). Association of basal and post-Synachten
stimulated 17-hydroxyprogesterone levels with insulin resistance in Polycystic Ovary
Syndrome. Endocr Rev, 33, 98-1030.
Pearlstein, T. & O’Brien, S. (2017). A Woman with Inexplicable Mood Swings: Patient
Management of Premenstrual Syndrome. In Bio-Psycho-Social Obstetrics and
Gynaecology (pp. 183-198). Berlin: Springer.
Perlman, S. & Kjer, J. J. (2016). Ovarian damage due to cyst removal: a comparison of
endometriomas and dermoid cysts. Acta obstetricia et gynaecological
Scandinavica, 95(3), 285-290.
Qiao, M., Sun, P., Wang, H., Wang, Y., Zhan, X., Liu, H. & Wang, F. (2017).
Epidemiological Distribution and Subtype Analysis of Premenstrual Dysphoric
Disorder Syndromes and Symptoms Based on TCM Theories. Retrieved from:
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/bmri/2017/4595016/abs/
Rosenblum, J. & Ekhlaspour, L. (2017). Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. In The MassGeneral
Hospital for Children Adolescent Medicine Handbook (pp. 187-193). Berlin:
Springer.
Ryu, A. & Kim, T. H. (2015). Premenstrual syndrome: a mini review. Maturitas, 82(4), 436-
440.

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Safari, T., Manzari Tavakoli, A. R., Kheyr Khah, B., Saeedi, H. & Mahdavinia, J. (2015).
The relationship between premenstrual syndrome with anxiety, depression and
changes in social relations of women in Kerman University of Medical
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Shoupe, D. (2017). Diagnosis and Treatment of Premenstrual Syndrome: Differentiating
PMS from Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder PMDD and Premenstrual Exacerbation
Disorder PMED. Retrieved from:
https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007%2F978-3-319-17798-4_33
Stewart, M. (2013). No More PMS: Beat Pre-Menstrual Syndrome with the medically
proven Women's Nutritional Advisory Service Programme. United States: Random
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Yen, J. Y., Wang, P. W., Su, C. H., Liu, T. L., Long, C. Y. & Ko, C. H. (2018). Estrogen
levels, emotion regulation, and emotional symptoms of women with premenstrual
dysphoric disorder: The moderating effect of estrogens receptor
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