PURPOSE: to evaluate the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). METHODS: forty six women with PCOS, in accord with Rotterdam criteria (2003), and 44 women with regular menses, without any clinical or laboratorial hyperandrogenism features, and no ultrasonographic ovarian microcysts (control group) were evaluated. For metabolic syndrome, the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP, 2002) and the International Diabetes Federation (IDF, 2005) guidelines were considered. RESULTS: the prevalence of metabolic syndrome were 30.4% (NCEP) and 32.6% (IDF) for the women with PCOS, nearly 4-fold higher than that reported for the control group (p<0.004), which were 6.8% (NCEP) and 9.1% (IDF). Women with PCOS had persistently higher prevalence rates of the metabolic syndrome, regardless of matched age and body mass index. The most prevalent factor of the metabolic syndrome among the PCOS subjects was low serum HDL cholesterol which was below 50 mg/dl (52.2%). Waist circumference above 88 cm (47.8%), blood pressure above 130/85 mmHg and fasting glycemia above 110 mg/dl (4.3%) were significantly more frequent among women with PCOS than among control women. CONCLUSIONS: the metabolic syndrome is significantly more frequent in women with PCOS, placing them at higher risk for cardiovascular disease.
Polycystic ovary syndrome; Insulin resistance; Metabolic syndrome X; Obesity; Hyperandrogenism
