This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Weight gain linked to PCOS in early adulthood
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Dyslipidemia, hyperandrogenemia and significant increases in weight gain, especially in early adulthood, are associated with symptoms or diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome.
According to the researchers, these findings may help identify a crucial period in which weight gain plays a role in the emergence of PCOS. Further, it may lend evidence to when preventive actions against metabolic and cardiovascular diseases should be implemented.
Laure Morin-Papunen, MD, PhD, of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Oulu University Hospital, Finland, and colleagues evaluated data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 study on 5,889 women born in 1966 and followed at age 14, 31 and 46 years. The current study evaluated 125 women with both oligo-amenorrhea and hirsutism at age 31 years and 181 with formally diagnosed PCOS by age 46 years and compared them with 1,577 women without PCOS symptoms or diagnosis (controls).
Researchers sought to determine the link between weight, weight gain, hyperandrogenism and PCOS from adolescence to late adulthood.
Significantly greater BMI values and a greater prevalence of obesity were found among participants with self-reported oligo-amenorrhea and hirsutism and those with PCOS by age 45 years compared with controls.
Participants with self-reported oligo-amenorrhea (P = .006), isolated oligo-amenorrhea (P = .001) and a diagnosis of PCOS by age 45 years (P = .001) had greater weight changes from age 14 to 31 years compared with controls.
PCOS was significantly associated with elevated BMI at all ages (BMI at age 31 years, OR = 1.05; 95% CI, 1-1.1) free androgen index (OR = 1.08; 95% CI, 1.03-1.14), serum insulin levels (OR = 1.05; 95% CI, 1-1.09) and triglycerides (OR = 1.48; 95% CI, 1.08-2.03) in the multivariate analysis.
“The results of this prospective population-based cohort study indicate that BMI, and especially weight gain in early adulthood, plays a crucial role for the emergence of PCOS and that women with PCOS present with an unfavorable lipid profile already in early adulthood,” the researchers wrote. “We were also able to show that [isolated oligo-amenorrhea] or [isolated hirsutism], screened by a simple questionnaire at the time of early adulthood, are good predictors for the diagnosis of PCOS in later adulthood and can be used to identify the women at risk. ... Our results suggest that an increasing prevalence of symptomatic PCOS can be expected in the future and emphasize the role of weight management during adolescence and early adulthood.” – by Amber Cox
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts