Toward the Reliable Diagnosis of DSM-5 Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder: The Carolina Premenstrual Assessment Scoring System (C-PASS)

Objective:Despite evidence for the validity of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and the inclusion of the disorder in DSM-5, variable diagnostic practices compromise the construct validity of the diagnosis and threaten the clarity of efforts to understand and treat its underlying pathophysiology. In an effort to hasten and streamline the translation of the DSM-5 criteria for PMDD into terms compatible with existing research practices, the authors present the development and initial validation of the Carolina Premenstrual Assessment Scoring System (C-PASS). The C-PASS (available as a worksheet, Excel macro, and SAS macro) is a standardized scoring system for making DSM-5 PMDD diagnoses using two or more months of daily symptom ratings with the Daily Record of Severity of Problems (DRSP).Method:Two hundred women recruited for retrospectively reported premenstrual emotional symptoms provided two to four months of daily symptom ratings on the DRSP. Diagnoses made by expert clinician and by the C-PASS wer...