Heart Disease Marker in PCOS Women

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) may also be at increased risk for cardiovascular disease, as evidenced by endothelial dysfunction, an early marker for atherosclerosis.

Researchers at University Hospital in Ioannina (Greece) studied endothelial function in women with PCOS compared to normal women and also investigated the determinants of endothelial dysfunction in women with PCOS and its relationship with body mass index (BMI). Their study involved 62 young women with PCOS whose average age was 22.7 years, with 17 controls matched for age and BMI. Twenty-three of the women with PCOS were lean, 21 were overweight, and 18 were obese. The researchers assessed endothelium-dependent and independent vascular function noninvasively by measuring flow-mediated and nitrate-mediated dilation in the brachial artery of the arm.

Those women with PCOS showed significant endothelial dysfunction as soon as their early twenties. This marker is evident in women with PCOS regardless of their weight and, although it appears to deteriorate with increasing BMI, this was not found statistically significant. The findings, reported in the September 20005 issue of the Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, suggest that women with PCOS are at risk for early-onset cardiovascular problems and will benefit from a treatment program that incorporates healthful lifestyle and cardio-protective measures in addition to treatment for PCOS.






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