PCOS: A Little-Known Syndrome That Affects 1 in 10 Women | Health

PCOS affects up to 13% of women of childbearing age, yet many are unaware of its existence.that is hormonal disorders It is characterized by irregular and infrequent periods, excess body hair, persistent acne, and lack of ovulation. Women with PCOS are more likely to struggle with weight, and approximately 80% of diagnosed women are obese.

many cysts

Like Laube, some women with PCOS have cysts in their ovaries. This is a typical symptom of this disorder, but is not required for diagnosis. The only features required for PCOS diagnostics are: high androgen levelscan be tested by taking a blood sample.

The best-known example of an androgen that is considered a “male” sex hormone is testosterone. Men have more of these hormones, but women also have androgens. In fact, too low levels of androgens can cause problems for women, leading to low or non-existent libido, fatigue, and muscle loss.

However, too high levels can cause unwanted symptoms that are difficult to treat.

Diane 35 and metformin

In the years that followed, Laube didn’t think much about her cyst. She liked that her birth control was prescribed. That means she can have sex with her boyfriend without worrying too much.

At the age of 21, she moved to Germany from her native Canada. Her first year in Europe, she used contraceptives prescribed in her home country. When it ran out, she found a German gynecologist who prescribed Diane 35. Diane 35 is an oral contraceptive that doctors have called “the most powerful on the market.”

“I took Diane 35 but I had migraines and my periods were very painful. I had terrible cramps and I was losing blood even in my body…but without Diane 35 my periods disappeared. I lost my hair,” she said.

Although Diana 35 is not currently prescribed as a general birth control pill, it is one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for women with PCOS, cystic acne and hirsutism (excessive body hair growth) is.

By the age of 26, Laube began looking for another kind of treatment. He was in the mid-90s then, so when he went to the office, he could use a new thing called Google. For the first time in her life, Laube was able to name her symptoms. She messaged dozens of doctors, asking for something to make her situation more bearable.

Eventually, I received a reply from a US-based doctor advising me to try metformin, a diabetes medication often prescribed to people with PCOS today. Since this was still in the early stages of recognition of PCOS, the idea was new and the German doctors at Laube opposed it. Still, she asked her mother to send her metformin from Canada. she received it. Within weeks she had her period again and two months later she was pregnant.

At some point, perhaps because of Laube’s insistence on asking for information, Hamburg doctors sent her to Onno Janssen, a doctor in Essen who is investigating the possibility of treating PCOS with metformin. she said. Over her next two years, Ms. Janssen taught Ms. Laube about her condition along with about 200 women with similar symptoms.

Together, the woman, Janssen and other doctors in his department formed Germany’s first nationwide ‘PCOS self-help group’. Laube says she gets frequent online messages from women wanting to understand their condition, and it’s almost always the same. A slingshot from one doctor to the next. Women sometimes cry tears of relief after talking to Laube and realizing they are not alone.

Where did PCOS come from?

Laube’s condition closely matches the profile of a typical PCOS patient, a T. She is Native American (Afro-Caribbean, Native American, and South Asian women are all more likely to have PCOS). Her daughter has the syndrome (doctors believe it is hereditary). She had her weight issues, acne and hair issues.

However, there is no one-size-fits-all solution for PCOS. Metformin worked for Ms. Laube, but for others the side effects prevented them from using the drug. Diane 35 didn’t work, but others do. For each patient, treatment involves a (sometimes painful and arduous) process of trial and error until something takes hold.

“For nearly 90 years, there have been no approved drugs or treatments specifically for PCOS,” says PCOS, a US-based group aimed at raising awareness about the syndrome, which is neither curable nor contagious. Challenge president Sasha Otti said. All women with PCOS are born with PCOS.

Although it is easier to get a diagnosis today than it was 20 years ago, women are often under- or misinformed about treatment when diagnosed. Some, like Otti, are told to lose her weight and come back later. Colin Duncan, a PCOS expert at the University of Edinburgh, says some people say she’s infertile, but that’s just not true.

“I’ve seen patients in clinics and a lot of them told me they weren’t going to have children,” says Duncan. “But the reality is that women with PCOS often have children because they ovulate occasionally even without treatment. And I think people worry too much about that. .”

weight problems and mental illness

Regardless of fertility, Duncan says the biggest worry about polycystic ovary syndrome is weight. Because polycystic ovary syndrome is unpredictable and often out of the control of the woman herself, it can lead to serious mental health problems.

“The question is, why do women with PCOS gain weight more easily? The answer is not because they eat too much or exercise too little. It’s too simple.”

When looking at the diet of women with PCOS, most of the time they don’t eat as much as other people. And when you look at physical activity, they don’t seem to get as much exercise as the rest of the population. “

The professor explains that this happens because women with PCOS have higher insulin levels and therefore lower energy expenditure.

“Because they have a lower capacity to burn calories, they have a lower energy expenditure, which means it is not a level playing field. or reduce it by 5%.”

This lack of control can cause serious problems for women with PCOS, says Duncan. The patient was four times more likely than average to have an eating disorder, and reportedly had a higher than average incidence of depression.

And the lack of understanding of PCOS among medical professionals only makes things worse.

The women Otti knows with PCOS “feel criticized, stigmatized, disbelieved, unheard, unheard. She says her doctor told her she was lying when she reported her activity. “People with PCOS are not the same. Our metabolism is different.”