The increased awareness for Polycystic ovarian syndrome has led to earlier diagnosis and recognition of the condition among women. 

PCOS is essentially a hormonal imbalance characterized by low levels of Estrogen and Progesterone. It’s most common symptoms are irregular menses, hyperandrogenism or an excess in testosterone leading to acne and an overgrowth of body hair, and the appearance of polycystic ovarian morphology on Ultrasound. It doesn’t matter whether both or only one of the ovaries are affected because it affects the whole body.

PCOS is still a mystery to health professionals. The origin of the disease is unknown so it can never be fully cured. 

Knowing you have it, and knowing what you want from your reproductive life is what guides your treatment options. 

For example, women who want to have regular menses but are still not ready to have kids can be given Combined Oral Contraceptive pills because they contain both Estrogen and Progesterone. Estrogen helps the endometrial lining grow, while Progesterone stabilizes it—this ensures that your menses arrive every month. 

Women who want to have children are given meds that induce ovulation and supplements that can help the ovaries produce follicles and the uterus to produce a healthy endometrium.

We can only manage your symptoms but these come back once medications are stopped.

Women who have PCOS need to keep a healthy lifestyle. An excess in androgens has been shown to lead to obesity, increased levels of cholesterol and diabetes. All these could result in a higher risk for endometrial cancer, hypertension and diabetes. 

Regular exercise and a healthy diet helps metabolize fat, converting it to estrogen which allows egg follicles to grow and potentially lead to ovulation. Increased Estrogen in the presence of Progesterone from the corpus luteum (structure produced after ovulation) allowing the endometrium to grow enough for a fertilized egg to implant in it.

Women with PCOS should aim at having a healthy lifestyle rather than just aiming to lose weight fast through fad diets. Sensible eating and regular exercise can help women have more regular menses and a better shot at getting pregnant (should they want it).

A lot of women with PCOS have difficulty getting pregnant because they do not always ovulate, so there is no egg for the sperm to fertilize. Women who want to regulate their menses and get pregnant may be given Metformin, a drug for diabetes even though they don’t have the disease, because it has been shown to convert fat to Estrogen. Progesterone is only given cyclically every day 16 to 25 of menses to mimic the natural cycle. If they are planning to get pregnant, they are advised to take folic acid supplementation to decrease the incidence of neural tube defects as well as multivitamins that contain DHA and EPA to improve endometrial growth and enhance brain development.

A phenomenon called Spontaneous ovulation has also been known to occur, wherein the ovaries ovulate during times where they are not supposed to. Women who are trying to get pregnant are advised to have intercourse every other day because their ovaries just might do this.