Use of low dose danazol in luteal phase only as management of premenstrual syndrome and mastalgia

Background: approximately 30%-70% of women experience mastalgia at some point. however,is termed as premenstrual syndrome (pms) and mastalgia. various substances have been used to treat this condition. the most effective treatment so far is elimination of ovarian cycle by using high dose estrogen,continuous combined oral contraceptive (coc),gnrh and danazol. danazol used in small dose of 200mgs daily in the luteal phase has shown promising results in the alleviation of symptoms. aim: to see the efficacy of low dose danazol (200mg daily) in the treatment of pms & cyclic mastalgia. methods: study was carried out at ghurki trust teaching hospital,lahore from january 2014 to august 2014 (both inclusive). patients who had recurrent symptoms of pms in 4 out of previous 6 cycles were included. exclusion criteria were defined and followed strictly. patients were asked to fill in a questionnaire regarding the severity of their symptoms. danazol was prescribed in a dose of 200 mgs per day. patients were asked to fill the same performa after 3 cycles of treatment. the answers were quantified and analyzed. results: subjective improvement in the symptoms of breast pain was seen in 22 out of 30 patients (73.3%). thirteen patients reported less mood disturbance (43.3%). feeling of bloating was improved in 20 patients (66.6%). conclusion: danazol is small doses of 200 mgs per day appears to be an effective treatment for managent of mastalgia and pms in this small group of patient. further studies need to be carried out to establish the role of danazol in treatment of pms and mastalgia.