Abstract

Background and Objectives: Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) is a common health problem in women in reproductive age. The present study aimed to investigate the prevalence of premenstrual syndrome using meta-analysis method. Methods: This meta-analysis systematically reviewed the prevalence of Premenstrual Syndrome. A search was conducted using keywords Premenstrual Syndrome, PMS, prevalence Premenstrual Syndrome and symptom of Premenstrual Syndrome in reliable English articles. The initial search 53 articles were available. After review of full-text articles, 17 articles were selected for analysis. Data were combined using meta-analysis (random effects model). Data were analyzed using STATA software, Version 11.1 Results: Overall, 17 studies met our inclusion criteria. The pooled prevalence of PMS was 47.8 (95 CI: 32.6-62.9). The lowest and highest prevalence were reported in France 12 (95 CI: 11-13) and Iran 98 (95 CI: 97-100) respectively. However, meta-regression scatter plot showed an increasing trend in the prevalence of PMS during 1996-2011 but correlation between prevalence of PMS and year of study was not significance (p= 0.797). Interpretation and Conclusions: Considering that different tools have been used in studies and many studies have been designed based on a limited sample, therefore, future research needs to consider the prevalence of PMS in different countries of world.