Endocrine Abstracts

This study was conducted to evaluate the frequency of PCOS in a group of FTM transsexual persons and its relationship between clinical, hormonal and metabolic characteristics.

Subjects and Methods: We studied 21 FTM cases, aged 17–37 years, BMI 24.6±5.2. No patient reported previous hormonal treatment or sex re-assignment surgery. PCOS was diagnosed according to the Rotterdam ESHRE/ASRM-sponsored PCOS Consensus Workshop Group, 2004. World Health Organization’s criteria for metabolic syndrome (MBS) was used. Insulin resistance was determined using the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR).

Results: Twelve out of 21 FTM trans participants (57.1%) were diagnosed as PCOS. None of the PCOS patients had MBS. No significant differences in BMI nor plasmatic levels of free and total testosterone, LH, FSH, estradiol, cholesterol and triglycerides were found between PCOS and no PCOS trans patients. PCOS trans patients had higher plasmatic insulin levels and HOMA-IR compared to no-PCOS FTMs (8.6±3.5 vs. 4.5±1.6; P<0.005 and 2±0.9 vs. 0.9±0.4; P<0.05 respectively).

Conclusions: In our study we found more than half of FTM individuals with PCOS, which was associated with elevated levels of plasmatic insulin and HOMA-IR. Our data suggest that transsexual men should be screened for PCOS and parameters of insulin resistance, as PCOS and cross sex androgen treatment have been reported as predisposing factors for the development of diabetes. A larger study is ongoing in order to confirm these preliminary results.