Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common hormonal disorder in reproductive-age women. In a study published in Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica, women with PCOS were more likely to also have migraine, hypertension, tendinitis, osteoarthritis, and endometriosis. Affected women were also using medications more often and reported their own health to be poorer than women without PCOS.
Few studies have systematically assessed the overall comorbidity in women with PCOS, which should be of greater importance given the high costs of PCOS-related comorbidity. For example, PCOS-related type 2 diabetes alone has been estimated to carry an annual cost of $310 million in the UK and $1.77 billion in the USA. The syndrome often remains underdiagnosed despite being so common, and therefore is less represented in national databases, making it harder to assess comorbidities.
The present study included 246 women with PCOS symptoms or diagnoses and 1573 controls who were surveyed during their late reproductive years at age 46.
“PCOS is often labelled as a reproductive concern; however, in most cases this is well managed with fertility treatments. Our study underscores the need for health professionals to acknowledge the risk for several comorbidities and increased health burden related to this common syndrome,” said senior author professor Terhi T. Piltonen, MD, PhD, of the University of Oulu, in Finland. “Women should also be aware of this risk, and they should be supported by early diagnosis and treatment.”
Source: Wiley
