[Characteristics of the functional state of the central nervous system in women during the menstrual cycle and in premenstrual syndrome].

Electroencephalographic examination of the function of the central nervous system in 30 healthy women and in 15 ones suffering from the premenstrual syndrome, carried out over both phases of the menstrual cycle, has revealed clear-cut differences between the two groups. 46% of the patients developed pathologic shifts at the level of the brain stem, 37% of the hypothalamic level, and 17% combined involvement of these portions of the brain. Triggering of the compensatory defense mechanisms already during the follicular phase of the cycle indicates failure of the adaptation mechanisms in the patients with the premenstrual syndrome.