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Mothers of women with PCOS face higher mortality risk
Women older than 60 years whose daughters have been diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome have an increased mortality risk, especially those who also have type 2 diabetes, according to new research.
“This is the first study to observe this excess risk of death in mothers of patients who have been diagnosed with PCOS,” Yvonne V. Louwers, MD, a resident doctor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Erasmus MC University Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, said in a press release. “Our findings justify the active screening of mothers of women with PCOS so that timely preventive and therapeutic measures can be taken.”
Louwers and colleagues had 958 patients with PCOS fill out questionnaires about their family history and compared death rates of their mothers (n=946) and fathers (n=902) with the nationwide birth and death database of the general Dutch population. Additionally, they compared the mothers who had diabetes in the cohort (as reported by the patients with PCOS) with a control group of women with diabetes.
The researchers reported that mothers older than 60 years had a standard mortality ratio (SMR) 1.5 times greater than the general population (95% CI, 1.15-1.92). When comparing the women who had diabetes with the general population, they also had a higher SMR of 2.22 (95% CI, 1.39-3.36). Additionally, comparing the mothers of PCOS daughters who also had diabetes with a control group of patients with diabetes, the study cohort had a twofold increased risk of death (RR=2; 95% CI, 1.19-3.41).
“Although our study was based on questionnaires and retrospective data, and prospective, long-term follow-up studies are needed, the excess mortality risk is just too high for us to wait patiently for the results of these follow-up studies before taking action to help reduce the risk of deaths in these mothers,” Louwers said.
The study researchers said mothers of women with PCOS, and therefore their daughters as well, should be increasingly monitored for diabetes and aggressively treated if diagnosed with diabetes.
Louwers said the researchers will embark on a prospective long-term follow-up of patients who have been diagnosed with PCOS and who have reached perimenopausal and postmenopausal ages as well as their parents. The new aim of research will be cardiovascular health to better understand the link between PCOS, CV complications and risk of death.
Disclosure: Louwers reports no relevant financial disclosures. One researcher reports financial relationships that are disclosed in the study.