Prevalence of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, Its Associated Conditions And Complications: an Experience from a Low Socio-Economic Population of Sikandrabad, Karachi, Pakistan

To study the prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome, its associated conditions and complications in the low socio-economic population of Sikandrabad, Karachi. METHODOLOGY This cross-sectional study was conducted in a primary health care centre of Ziauddin University, Sikandrabad-Karachi, Pakistan, from January-June 2021. The ethical committee of the university approved this study. All female patients with gynaecological complaints having an age between 18 to 49 years were included. Females with a history of unilateral oophorectomy, uterine abnormality and abnormal karyotype or known malignancies were excluded from the study. A sample size of 118 was calculated using open-epi software. A performed questionnaire was used to collect data from females with gynaecological complaints. PCOS was diagnosed using Rotterdam criteria. Routine examination tests were done at the Primary Health Care Clinic (PHCC) of Ziauddin Hospital, and obesity was labelled through BMI calculation.

Of 118 females in the reproductive age group screened, 55.93% reported PCOS as a major gynaecological problem, followed by endometriosis at 16.94%, uterine fibroid at 14.46% and urinary tract infections at 9.32% respectively. Patients had infertility as a major complaint, with 54.54% cases followed by menstrual abnormalities at 21.21%, obesity at 16.66% and others at 7.57%. Most patients (38%) were obese, and 34% were overweight.

PCOS is a prevalent complicated endocrine disorder in women in the reproductive age group, and it presents with varying gynaecological complications like infertility, menstrual disturbances, hirsutism, and acne. Obesity, hormonal imbalance and poor dietary intake affect the disease outcomes further. More multi-centred studies are needed to know the exact prevalence and causal relations. Downloads Metrics

Piltonen TT, Ruokojärvi M, Karro H, Kujanpää L, Morin-Papunen L, Tapanainen JS, et al. Awareness of polycystic ovary syndrome among obstetrician-gynecologists and endocrinologists in Northern Europe. PLoS One.2019;14(12):e0226074 Brakta S, Lizneva D, Mykhalchenko K, Imam A, Walker W, Diamond MP, et al. Perspectives on polycystic ovary syndrome: Is polycystic ovary syndrome research underfunded? J Clin Endocrinol Metab.2017;102(12):4421–7 Zafar U, Memon Z, Moin K, Agha S, Hassan JA, Zehra D. Prevalence of PCOS with associated symptoms and complications at tertiary care hospital of Karachi. J Adv Med Med Res.2019;1–9 Sidra S, Tariq MH, Farrukh MJ, Mohsin M. Evaluation of clinical manifestations, health risks, and quality of life among women with polycystic ovary syndrome. PLoS One.2019;14(10):e0223329 Crespo RP, Bachega TASS, Mendonça BB, Gomes LG. An update of genetic basis of PCOS pathogenesis. Arch Endocrinol Metab.2018;62(3):352–61 Ding T, Hardiman PJ, Petersen I, Wang F-F, Qu F, Baio G. The prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome in reproductive-aged women of different ethnicity: a systematic review and meta-analysis Oncotarget.2017;8(56):96351–8 Diamanti-Kandarakis E, Papalou O, Kandaraki EA, Kassi G. MECHANISMS IN ENDOCRINOLOGY: Nutrition as a mediator of oxidative stress in metabolic and reproductive disorders in women. Eur J Endocrinol.2017;176(2):R79–99 Fernandez R, Moore V, Van Ryswyk E, Varcoe T, Rodgers R, March W, et al. Sleep disturbances in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: prevalence, pathophysiology, impact and management strategies. Nat Sci Sleep.2018;10:45–64 Hillman SC, Dale J. Polycystic ovarian syndrome: an under-recognized problem? Br J Gen Pract. 2018;68(670). Williams T, Mortada R, Porter S. Diagnosis and treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome. Am Fam Physician. 2016;94(2):106–13 Flickr F us on. How do health care providers diagnose PCOS?.https://www.nichd.nih.gov/. [cited 2023 Aug 4] Shakil M, Ashraf F, Wajid A. Sexual functioning as predictor of depressive symptoms and life satisfaction in females with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). Pak J Med Sci Q.2020;36(7):1500–4 Charalampakis V, Tahrani AA, Helmy A, Gupta JK, Singhal R. Polycystic ovary syndrome and endometrial hyperplasia: an overview of the role of bariatric surgery in female fertility. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol.2016;207:220–6 Zandi S, Farajzadeh S, Safari H. Prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome in women with acne: Hormone profiles and clinical findings. Journal of Pakistan Association of Dermatology. 2016;20(4):194–8. Alotaibi M, Shaman AA. Enhancing polycystic ovarian syndrome awareness using private social network. MHealth.2020;6:33 Tahir H, CMH Lahore Medical College & Institute of Dentistry, Lahore, Pakistan, Hassan A, Khan QU, Hafeez F, CMH Lahore Medical College & Institute of Dentistry, Lahore, Pakistan, et al. Prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome awareness among female medical students. Discov Rep.2020;3:e10 Islam MA, AlShayban DM, Nisa Z-U-, Al-Hawaj GAM, Al-Eid GHA, Alenazi AMM, et al. What is the current state of awareness, knowledge, and attitudes toward breast cancer? A cross-sectional survey among health and non-health college students. Front Public Health.2022;10:838579 Anjum S, Askari S, Riaz M, Basit A. Clinical presentation and frequency of metabolic syndrome in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: An experience from a tertiary care hospital in Pakistan Cureus.2020;12(12):e11860 Shah D, Patil M, National PCOS Working Group. Consensus statement on the use of oral contraceptive pills in polycystic ovarian syndrome women in India. J Hum Reprod Sci.2018;11(2):96–118 Yamamoto A, Johnstone EB, Bloom MS, Huddleston HG, Fujimoto VY. A higher prevalence of endometriosis among Asian women does not contribute to poorer IVF outcomes. J Assist Reprod Genet.2017;34(6):765–74. Helvaci N, Karabulut E, Demir AU, Yildiz BO Polycystic ovary syndrome and the risk of obstructive sleep apnea: a meta-analysis and review of the literature. Endocr Connect.2017;6(7):437–45 Haq F, Aftab O, Rizvi J. Clinical, biochemical and ultrasonographic features of infertile women with polycystic ovarian syndrome. J Coll Physicians Surg Pak.2007;17(2):76–80 Sortino MA, Salomone S, Carruba MO, Drago F. Polycystic ovary syndrome: Insights into the therapeutic approach with inositols. Front Pharmacol.2017;8:341. Kiconco S, Teede HJ, Azziz R, Norman RJ, Joham AE. The need to reassess the diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS): A review of diagnostic recommendations from the international evidence-based guideline for the assessment and management of PCOS. Semin Reprod Med.2021;39(3–04):71–7 Moran LJ, Tassone EC, Boyle J, Brennan L, Harrison CL, Hirschberg AL, et al. Evidence summaries and recommendations from the international evidence-based guideline for the assessment and management of polycystic ovary syndrome: Lifestyle management. Obes Rev.2020;21(10):e13046 Escobar-Morreale HF, Santacruz E, Luque-Ramirez M, Carretero B. Prevalence of ’obesity-associated gonadal dysfunction’in severely obese men and women and its resolution after bariatric surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Human Reproduction Update. 2017;23:390–408 Laganà AS, Barbaro L, Pizzo A. Evaluation of ovarian function and metabolic factors in women affected by polycystic ovary syndrome after treatment with D-Chiro-Inositol. Arch Gynecol Obstet.2015;291(5):1181–6 Shishehgar F, Ramezani Tehrani F, Mirmiran P, Hajian S, Baghestani AR, Moslehi N. Comparison of dietary intake between polycystic ovary syndrome women and controls. Glob J Health Sci.2016;8(9):54801 Cutler DA, Pride SM, Cheung AP. Low intakes of dietary fiber and magnesium are associated with insulin resistance and hyperandrogenism in polycystic ovary syndrome: A cohort study. Food Sci Nutr.2019;7(4):1426–37 Downloads Published How to Cite Issue Section License Copyright (c) 2023 Aylia Mazhar, Fatima Jehangir, Atikka Masud, Syed Hussain Baqar Abidi, Iqra Jalil, Naseem Zehra, Wasim Ahmad This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.