Quality Of Life And Psychological Morbidity In Women With PCOS Infertility @ ARC

PCOS is a common problem among teen girls and young women. In fact, almost 1 out of 10 women has PCOS.

What is PCOS?

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is an hormonal imbalance that can cause irregular periods, unwanted hair growth, and acne. PCOS begins during a girl’s teen years and can be mild or severe.

What are the signs of PCOS?

Some of the most common signs of PCOS include:

• Irregular periods that come every few months, not at all, or too frequently

• Extra hair on the face or other parts of the body, called hirsutism.

• Acne • Weight gain and/or trouble losing weight

• Patches of dark skin on the back of the neck and other areas, called acanthosis nigricans.

Could I have PCOS?

If you have some or all of the above signs, you might have PCOS. There can be other reasons why you might have signs; however, only your health care provider can tell for sure.

What causes PCOS?

PCOS is caused by an imbalance in the hormones (chemical messengers) in your brain and your ovaries. PCOS usually happens when a hormone called LH (from the pituitary gland) or levels of insulin (from the pancreas) are too high, which then causes the ovaries to make extra amounts of testosterone.

1. The pituitary gland in your brain makes the hormones luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH).

2. After getting the signal from the hormones LH and FSH, the ovaries make estrogen and progesterone, the female sex hormones.

3. All normal ovaries also make a little bit of the androgen testosterone, a male sex hormone. The pancreas is an organ that makes insulin. High levels of insulin can also cause the ovaries to make more of the hormone testosterone.

Why are my periods so irregular?