The dangers of polycystic ovary syndrome

  Polycystic ovary syndrome is a common endocrine cum metabolic disorder in obstetrics and gynecology. The cause of the disease is not fully understood, but is thought to be genetically based with environmental factors involved, i.e. a family history of obesity, paternal baldness, maternal menstrual disorders, diabetes, hypertension, etc., may increase the risk of the disease in daughters who “eat more and move less”. Clinical manifestations may include menstrual disorders, infertility, acne, hair loss, hirsutism, weight gain, and “multiple small follicles” in the ovaries on ultrasound.  1. The impact of the disease in childhood on women’s health is lifelong and may involve multiple systems throughout the body. Most of the “onset” of the disease is during puberty, and it is only detected because most patients are seen for menstrual disorders during puberty, but in fact the nature of the disease may already be present. If a girl with childhood obesity or even precocious puberty is born with a low birth weight or a huge child, she may have polycystic ovary syndrome in the future, so parents must take their child to a child growth and development center or pediatric clinic for early consultation. At this time, no medication will be given for gynecology, but the bone age may be monitored if necessary to avoid low height of the girl as an adult. Parents should pay attention to monitor their children not to over-nutrition, a balanced diet of various nutrients, control the intake of high-energy foods, eliminate junk food, and also allow children to exercise in moderation under the guidance of professionals.  2. After the onset of puberty, menstrual disorders and acne become the most common reasons for adolescent females to visit the doctor. Menstrual disorders are caused by malfunction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis, which regulates female reproduction, and the inability of the ovaries to ovulate periodically and the lack of cyclical changes in female hormones. It can manifest as various types of menstrual disorders, such as scanty menstruation, amenorrhea, frequent menstruation, and irregular vaginal bleeding; a few patients also have regular menstruation, but such menstruation is not necessarily accompanied by ovulation. Acne, like hirsutism, temporal hair loss, and seborrhea, are clinical manifestations of excess androgens in the body. Hirsutism generally manifests as an increase in sexual rather than body hair, and can be an increase in jaw whiskers, lip whiskers, or areola or pubic hair. Acne can be papular, pustular, or nodular. If left untreated, it can produce acne marks or even scars after lesions, causing psychological effects on young girls in their flowering years. Likewise, the continued failure to establish normal menstrual patterns can cause psychological shadows in girls during this sensitive period. Because there is a gradual development and maturation process of female reproductive axis function during puberty, and there is physiological insulin resistance and physiological androgen excess during this particular time; it is difficult to define the time frame between the perfect development of reproductive axis and both physiological and pathological androgen excess. Therefore, the diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome during puberty should be cautious, but the needed treatment should not be untimely, otherwise waiting until after puberty to start the diagnosis and treatment may delay the condition.  3, sexual maturity because polycystic ovary syndrome both metabolic disease characteristics, to sexual maturity, if not well control weight and insulin resistance before, this time may have to start running internal medicine. With obesity, waist and abdominal circumference is getting bigger and bigger, this kind of obesity is usually called abdominal obesity, this kind of abdominal obesity and insulin resistance are closely related. Therefore, when abnormal insulin secretion and dyslipidemia are detected, it is time to treat them actively to avoid diabetes, fatty liver and common complications of polycystic ovary syndrome such as hypertension and coronary heart disease. Some patients can improve through diet and exercise alone, but of course these need the help of a nutritionist and a sports medicine specialist because inappropriate weight loss may cause damage to the body and wrong exercise may lead to damage to the bone and joint in obese patients. Another part of the patients should be under the guidance of clinicians drug control plus regular follow-up.  4. Infertility in reproductive age is an important reason for patients with polycystic ovary syndrome at this stage of reproductive age to visit gynecology, including infertility and recurrent miscarriage. Because ovulation is impaired in polycystic ovary syndrome, the chances of pregnancy are reduced compared to normal women. Once pregnant, they are prone to spontaneous abortion because of the characteristic high androgens, high gonadotropins, high insulin levels and abnormal endometrial tolerance. Those who do not have spontaneous abortions also have an increased chance of developing pregnancy complications such as gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes, and amniotic fluid overload compared to normal women. Therefore, it is important to receive basic treatment before pregnancy to control weight and adjust blood biochemical indicators to near normal. This will reduce complications during pregnancy for the mother and also reduce the risk of preterm birth, low birth weight and huge babies, and get a healthy baby. More importantly, it gives the baby a good start in life. The famous Doha (DOHaD) doctrine, the doctrine of the developmental origins of health and disease, suggests that some diseases in adulthood such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and neuropsychiatric disorders are associated with exposure to adverse factors in the fetal period. Maternal hyperglycemia, high insulin, and high androgens lead to a poor intrauterine environment, which has an important impact on the occurrence of adult diseases in newborns after birth.  5. It is worth mentioning that the impact of polycystic ovary syndrome on women’s health does not end with the completion of female fertility or menopause; rather, the risk of associated complications increases year by year. In addition to the aforementioned medical complications, some female cancers are also at risk, such as breast cancer and endometrial cancer; these are related to the hormonal imbalance of polycystic ovary syndrome. Due to sparse ovulation, the endometrium in polycystic ovary syndrome is chronically stimulated by a single estrogen without progesterone antagonism and is at high risk for endometrial proliferation, with a risk of endometrial cancer four times higher than that of the general population. Therefore, regular clinical screening for endometrial cancer in women with polycystic ovary syndrome is necessary, and regular follow-up and monitoring is still needed even after menopause.  Some patients with polycystic ovary syndrome also have problems with mood disorders, which manifest as depression or anxiety.  Finally, it is important to emphasize that lifestyle modification, i.e., diet and exercise for weight control, is a long term and important role that cannot be replaced by medications.