PCOS is known as Poly Cystic Ovarian Disease. This disease affects one in five women in their reproductive life. This is a disease caused by certain imbalances in hormones. This affects girls of age groups from 12 to 45. The prevalence of PCOS in India is around 22.5% depending on the population.

First of all, it is essential to understand the disease. The best way to understand any disease is by splitting the terms in the name of the disease.

Poly- multiple

Cystic- formation of cysts (a cyst is a sac that is filled with fluid, air, or any other substance)

Ovarian- the location of the presence of cysts

Disorder- some event resulting in disruption of normal functioning

So PCOD is a condition in which multiple fluid-filled sacs are present in the ovaries and this disrupts its normal function. The cyst blocks the ovaries and does not allow the eggs to be released out. Hence this can affect the menstrual cycle and cause difficulties in conception.

As mentioned earlier, this is due to some imbalances in hormones. This disease is characterized by the excess presence of androgen & estrogen.

The other possible causes are heredity, diabetes mellitus, obesity, and inflammation. There is interdependence between PCOS and diabetes and each is a risk factor for the other.

PCOD is due to the increase in Androgen and Testosterone. This is due to the decrease in SHBG (Sexual Hormone Binding Globulin). This is a protein (globulin) produced in the liver where the sex hormones are bound to. In its absence, the sexual hormones become free and this contributes to the increase in their levels.

Also, there is a hormone called GnRH (Gonadotropin-releasing hormone) which stimulates the LH (luteinizing hormone) and FSH (follicle-stimulating hormone) to release ovum and other hormones.

pituitary gland present in the hypothalamus

Progesterone is another important hormone that tends to reduce GnRH hence keeping the hormone levels in balance. An important thing to take into fact is that the progesterone is generated from the corpus leutum which is derived from the egg if it is not fertilized.

So in the case of PCOD, there is no chance for the egg to be released (ovulation). So no egg, no follicle, no corpus leutum, no progesterone, and hence there is hormonal imbalance.

The cysts that are formed in PCOD inside the ovaries are the eggs which are failed to be released. In the case of diabetes, the increase in blood sugar levels tends the body to produce more insulin and this, in turn, increases the production of androgen.

The symptom of this disease is the outcome of the excess of hormones. The main symptoms can be coined as HA-IR-AN and all these three symptoms are due to the increase of androgen.

Hyper Androgynism, Insulin Resistance, and Ancothosis Nigricans. The other symptoms are male type baldness, acne, weight gain, infertility, amenorrhea (absence of menstrual bleeding), or menorrhagia (excess of menstrual bleeding).

  • Irregular bleeding
  • Acne
  • Body hair growth
  • Obesity

This disease can be detected by physical exam or blood test indicating the hormone level. The best and the painless method is using an ultrasound scan to check for cysts.

Since this is a lifestyle disease, the best treatment is lifestyle modification. Reducing excess weight, having a low carbohydrate diet can be done. Surprisingly, cow ghee is seen as beneficial for PCOS patients. A tablespoon of ghee is recommended each day, Consuming tablets for hormone balance, using skin treatment products, and injections can be done.

Some of the surgical methods include aromatase inhibitors, laparoscopy and ovarian drilling. These are for extreme and severe cases. 

NO MEDICINE OR METHOD WOULD WORK EFFECTIVELY WITHOUT CHANGES IN LIFESTYLE.

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