Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

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POLYCYSTIC OVARIES SYNDROME

By: Christina Chivalier

Polycystic Ovaries Syndrome (PCOS) is an ovulation disorder and infertility that occurs in many women. Polycystic ovaries syndrome dates back to 1845 where it was described in a French manuscript as being "changes in the ovaries". It was called "sclerocystic". Polycystic ovaries syndrome is a problem that occurs in with the ovaries. A "polycystic ovary is characterized as being a tough, thickened, shiny white covering overlying a layer of many small cysts just under the ovarian surface." (Thatcher, 10). That was the description that was found in the French manuscript and is still being used to this day for doctors to define polycystic ovaries. A wedge resection in the early 1900's was the first form of treatment for this syndrome. PCOS involves more than just the ovaries filled with small cysts. Polycystic Ovaries Syndrome causes infertility in women.

Polycystic Ovaries Syndrome can cause a number of symptoms. Its can cause everything from obesity to missed periods. It also causes women to have more of the male hormone in their bodies, which cause male hair growth. Not all of PCOS patients have excessive hair growth some may have other skin conditions, like acne. PCOS is the one of the most notorious cause if missed menstrual cycles and "infertility due to the lack of ovulation". (Thatcher, 12)

There are three main reasons women with PCOS get medical attention. The first is that they have missed menstrual cycles. A woman's period should not be light, short, or irregular. There are steps that a woman's body needs to go through in order for women to become pregnant. There is a normal menstrual cycle that a woman's body

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should go through and if it doesn't then the women has an irregular cycle. This process the movement of an egg to a fertilizing position, developing a lining in the uterus, then the shedding of that lining when the egg doesn't become fertilized.

The second reason woman get medical attention for PCOS, is that they have worries about their physical appearances due to obesity, and excessive hair growth. This reason includes weight gain and abnormal hair growth. Abnormal hair growth means that the hair grows in places that it would normally grow on men. This extra hair growth can be a bad thing for a woman's self-esteem. Alopecia is also another form of hair loss that can occur. Alopecia is the female type of male pattern baldness. The way to reversing all these symptoms is balancing the female hormones. "Scalp massages and stimulating shampoos can help". (Hammerly, 77) The third is that they have abnormalities in their metabolic systems. This reason included blood fat levels, insulin/glucose levels, and high blood pressures.

There are also other signs that women might get concerned with but may not contact a specialist about. Acne is one of these signs.

A cyst is known as a fluid filled structure that is formed with a wall and a cavity. A cyst is like a balloon filled with water. A cyst can be all kinds of different sizes and shapes. The different type of wall covering around a cyst is what categorizes them or the different types of fluid that a cyst contains. The cysts that are form when a woman has PCOS are small cysts that are never cancerous. These cysts that cause PCOS produce male hormones more than they produce the female ones. There are three ways that a doctor can diagnose PCOS in their patients. These ways are one in the clinical findings,

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another in the laboratory testing, and the final way is in the ultrasound scan. The clinical findings are when you the patient and your doctor confirm the menstrual disturbances, hair and skin problems, and obesity. The laboratory testings are when the doctor has you under go certain tests

The uses of genetics in the blame of PCOS are difficult to study. There are many reasons why genetics are very complicated to study. These reasons are listed below. (Thatcher, 44)

Ð'* "Lack of a universally accepted diagnosis of PCOS

Ð'* Outward appearance (phenotype) can be vastly different despite similar genetic constitutions (genotype).

Ð'* PCOS patients often come from small families with a limited number of sisters and brothers (sibs)