PCOS in Connection with Heart Disease in Young Women

Researchers at the University of Adelaide's Robinson Institute have identified previously unsuspected cause of heart disease in women. They found a link between PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome) and heart disease in young women. This small pilot study found significant abnormalities in heart function among women with PCOS who had an average age of 31. PCOS is a hormonal disorder and is one of the most common female endocrine disorders that affect about 10% of women in their reproductive age, and it also is a leading cause of infertility.

Alicia Chan, who is a cardiologist at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and also a researcher at University mentioned previously, says that the findings they have found were shocking. She says the degree of blood clotting and blood vessel abnormalities that are seen in women who suffer from PCOS is shocking, and she compares the degree of blood clothing in women who suffer from PCOS to the older patients who are known to have heart disease. Adelaide-based researchers proved with this study that young women with PCOS may show signs of irregular heart function otherwise expected in much older women with known heart disease.

Polycystic ovary syndrome is seen in women of all body shapes, which is contrary to the myth that PCOS is closely related with being overweight or obese. It is true that women who are overweight and who suffer from PCOS do have a hard time losing weight, but not only overweight women who have PCOS are overweight. This study also proves that the newly discovered link between PCOS and heart disease occurs regardless woman s weight: women who suffer from polycystic ovary syndrome had heart-related problems regardless their weight. This study is a huge step forward. Actually, this is the first study that suggests PCOS is in strong connection with increased risk of heart disease regardless evidence of PCOS woman suffering from insulin resistance and diabetes, and regardless woman's body weight. This small pilot study has set the ground for a larger research that will be staged in order to confirm the results that appeared in the study.