Clinical features of 98 women with premature ovarian failure.

Objective To explore clinical features and current treatment status in Chinese women with premature ovarian failure (POF). Methods A retrospective study for clinical features was conducted on 98 women with premature ovarian failure from August 2001 to March 2004 in Peking University Third Hospital. Compare the clinical parameters between 98 POF patients and 25 controls with normal ovarian function.Compare the clinical features between the familial and sporadic POF. Results Twenty-one(21.4%) cases had family history of POF or early menopause (EM). At least one ovary was visualized in 84.7% of the POF patients by vaginal ultrasound. The detection of follicular activity was found in 20 (20.4%) patients and ovulation was found in 8 cases. There were no differences in menarche age in POF patients and controls. The BMI in POF patients was greater than that in controls (P0.05). Mean uterine and ovarian volume was significantly smaller in POF group as compared with the control group (P0.01). Anti-nuclear antibodies (ANA) were found more frequently in patients with POF than in control patients, but there were no significant differences (P0.05). There were no significant differences in clinical features between familial POF and sporadic POF except more cases of regular menses before menopause in familial POF (90.5% vs 81.8%). 28.6% POF patients lacked standardized hormone replacement treatment (HRT). Conclusion Genetic and autoimmune disorders are the main causes of POF, but its etiologies remain unknown in most cases.Long-term HRT is needed to prevent long-term health sequel of estrogen deficiency. The only proven therapy for abtaining a pregnancy in POF patients is fertilization of a donor oocyte.