Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) frequently accompanied by insulin resistance metabolic abnormality. There are limited data on metabolic complications in women belonging to the PCOS phenotypes as defined by the Rotterdam criteria. Our objective was to investigate the prevalence of impaired fasting glucose (IFG) metabolism and dyslipidemia between different phenotypes in Iranian infertile women with PCOS.

Methods: We conducted a cross sectional study in our infertility outpatients clinic (Royan Institute), Tehran, Iran. A total of 633 women with PCOS according to Rotterdam criteria were studied (February 2011–September 2012). All subjects underwent blood samples for fasting glucose, lipids, reproductive hormones and a transvaginal ultrasound. Subjects were divided into following four different phenotypes: A) oligomenorrhea+hyperandrogenism+PCO, B) oligomenorrhea+hyperandrogenism, C) hyperandrogenism+PCO, and D) oligomenorrhea+PCO. Variables were compared between these phenotypes.

Results: The mean age was 28.7±4.5 years, mean duration of infertility was 7.4±4.4 years, 1.3% were illiterate, mean BMI was 26.7±3.7, 13.1% had IFG and 71.7% had high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol <50 mg/dl. Prevalence of IFG in different phenotypes of PCOS were 11.9, 33.3, 13.5 and 8.6% in A, B, C and D phenotypes respectively (P=0.041). 75.6, 77.8, 70.3 and 67.0% in A, B, C and D phenotypes respectively had HDL cholesterol <50 mg/d (P=0.01). There was no statistically significant differences in other lipid profiles between different phenotypes of PCOS patients.

Conclusions: Results of this study shows the prediabetes state and one the important cardiovascular risk factors – low HDL cholesterol – are more prevalent in B phenotype of PCOS. Classification of the metabolic complications for each phenotype will provide a guide for screening of metabolic risks of PCOS and may help to optimal treatment of these complications.