Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Boosts Risk for Pregnancy Complications

The news source is Medical News Today and the study was conducted by Karolinska Institute and Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden.

A new study was conducted which claimed that women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are highly at risk to have pregnancy complications in spite of treatments undertaken.

Normally, women who are in the reproductive stage do not have any problems relating to their monthly period; however, about 5 to 15% of them suffer from polycystic ovary syndrome, a common disorder in which small cysts typically develop around the edge of the ovaries. The symptoms consist of irregular periods, ovulation problems, weight gain and excessive hair growth. 

In the study, researchers evaluated a nationwide data, which included information on 3,787 births amongst women suffering from PCOS and 1,191,336 births of women without the condition by measuring the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, including pregnancy-induced diabetes, pre-eclampsia, premature birth, stillbirth, and neonatal death as well as poor health in newborns. Variables such as maternal characteristics, including age and body mass index, socioeconomic factors and fertility treatment like were made. 

The findings revealed that women diagnosed with the condition were more often obese and uses assisted reproductive technology, such as IVF treatment. They also discovered a strong association between PCOS and pre-eclampsia wherein those with the former condition had a 45% higher risk of developing pre-eclampsia and were more than twice as likely to give birth prematurely and/or to develop pregnancy induced diabetes. Moreover, babies whose mothers suffered from PCOS had a greater likelihood of being large at their gestational age and tended to develop asphyxia during labor. 

For the researchers, women who suffer with such ailment may need more than the usual supervision and guidance from the medical practitioners. They also added that the outcome of the study helps push the authorities to focus on glucose control, medical treatment and hormonal status among women with polycystic ovary syndrome during pregnancy. However, more evidence is needed to support the use of currently used interventions made to reduce perinatal risk which requires a greater understanding of the different phenotypes and the underlying mechanisms by which this common condition changes pregnancy outcomes.