Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

A condition in which women have high levels of male hormones, increasing the risk of irregular or absent menstrual cycles, infertility, obesity, ovarian cysts, heart disease, and diabetes. PCOS is associated with insulin resistance.

About PCOS

PCOS is a set of symptoms that result from a hormonal imbalance affecting women and girls of childbearing age. Women with PCOS usually have at least two of the following three conditions:

Absence of ovulation, leading to irregular menstrual periods or no periods at all High levels of androgens (a type of hormone) or signs of high androgens, such as having excess body or facial hair Cysts (fluid-filled sacs) on one or both ovaries—”polycystic” literally means “having many cysts“

Some women diagnosed with PCOS have the first two conditions listed above as well as other symptoms of PCOS but do not have cysts on their ovaries.

PCOS is the most common cause of anovulatory (pronounced an-OV-yuh-luh-tawr-ee) infertility, meaning that the infertility results from the absence of ovulation, the process that releases a mature egg from the ovary every month. Many women don’t find out that they have PCOS until they have trouble getting pregnant…Read more about PCOS NIH – National Institute of Child Health and Human Development