One in ten women is affected by this hormonal disease. However, at present, few diagnoses are made.
Chaotic periods, severe fatigue, acne, the effects of polycystic ovary syndrome affect many women. However, this disease remains poorly known, even if some celebrities have confided in their illness, such as EnjoyPhoenix, Sasha Pieterse, or Lea Michele.
This polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is thought to affect one in ten women worldwide. An "underestimated" data for Professor Michel Pugeat, endocrinologist, interviewed by The world, which estimates the proportion between 15% and 20% of the female population.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is "a hormonal disease, most common in women of childbearing age. It can cause fertility and hair growth disorders (hirsutism), as well as metabolic complications (diabetes). To date, there is no specific treatment. But current research could be a game-changer by improving the still imperfect understanding of the mechanisms behind this disease.", explains Inserm.
Different symptoms arise from this syndrome such as: ovulation disorder, hyperandrogenism (excessive production of testosterone, which results in hyperpilosity in 70% of women with PCOS, acne and hair loss), metabolic syndrome (predisposition to insulin resistance and diabetes) and a risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.
This disease of multifactorial origin is not easy to diagnose. "Because in medicine, many diseases have a more or less binary diagnosis. For example, in the case of an abnormal functioning of the thyroid gland, a laboratory test can be used to tell whether the patient is in hyperthyroidism or in hypothyroidism. Polycystic ovary syndrome requires more medical subtlety.", says endocrinologist Michel Pugeat at World. The latter quotes in the journal recent studies on social networks of PCOS patients, which were carried out in the United States and in France. The result of this research shows "that it took an average of five visits before a diagnosis was made."
And the patients would "a lot of difficulty in understanding what they are suffering from."https://www.aufeminin.com/"Polycystic ovary syndrome suffers from a delay in diagnosis and a lack of consistent and practical information. (…) There should be more communication around this syndrome with young girls and better training of professionals, in particular treating physicians, who are often the first that patients consult.", adds the specialist.
Fortunately, associations are the bridge between patients and information on polycystic ovary syndrome.
Psychological follow-up recommended
Researchers at the University of Oulu in Finland earlier this year studied the cases of 5,880 women aged between 31 and 46 with polycystic ovary syndrome since 1966. By comparing women who do not have polycystic ovary syndrome. the disease and women with the syndrome, they were able to demonstrate that the quality of life of patients was unsatisfactory and accompanied by great mental suffering. The study called for better psychological monitoring of patients and more appropriate treatments to cope with all the chronic symptoms other than infertility which are just as difficult to live with.
Today, scientists hope to develop new treatments that would resolve all the complications related to this syndrome, by addressing the cause of the problem itself and not each of the symptoms separately, confirms Inserm.