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What is polycystic ovarian disease? |
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Polycystic (meaning many cysts) ovarian disease is a disease which affects 5% of all women. It’s a common disease amongst women of all races and nationalities. It is the leading cause for infertility and is the most common hormonal disease amongst women of the reproductive age.
Polycystic ovarian disease is a complex condition that affects the ovaries (the organs in a woman's body that produce eggs).
A woman with polycystic ovarian disease will have larger than average ovaries, and the outer surface of the ovary has an abnormally large amount of small cysts.
With polycystic ovarian disease, these cysts remain immature, never fully developing or ovulating to produce an egg with capabilities of being fertilised. This makes the sufferer less fertile because she rarely ovulates. In addition, she doesn’t regularly have her periods and go many weeks without a period. Women are also likely to put on excess weight and grow excess body hair.
The disease is common among infertile women and women with ovulation problems. Generally, about 25 per cent of women will have polycystic ovaries seen on ultrasound examination but most have no other symptoms or signs of polycystic ovary disease and are perfectly healthy. The ultrasound appearance is also found in up to 14 per cent of women on the contraceptive pill.
What causes polycystic ovaries?
Genetics
Polycystic ovarian disease seems to run in families. One or more genes may make a woman more prone to inheriting the disease.
Insulin
A raised level of insulin in the bloodstream is thought to be a key reason for polycystic ovarian disease developing. Insulin is a hormone developed in the pancreas. The main role of insulin is to control blood sugar levels. Insulin acts mainly on fat and muscle cells which take in sugar when blood levels rise.
Women with polycystic ovarian disease have a resistance to insulin. Meaning, cells in their body are resistant to normal levels of insulin. Therefore, the level of insulin needs to be higher than normal to control blood sugar level. So, to keep sugar levels normal in the blood, insulin is made. A ‘side effect’ of high blood levels of insulin is that it causes ovaries to produce too much testosterone (male hormone). A high level of insulin and testosterone interfere with the normal development of follicles in the ovaries. As a result, many follicles tend to develop but often do not develop fully.
Weight
Being overweight can put women at more risk. Excess fat can make the resistance to insulin worse, which may cause the level of insulin to rise further.
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