Ultrasound examination of polycystic ovary. Photo: Schomynv / Wikipedia

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal disorder in women of childbearing age which is caused by increased testosterone activity in the ovaries. PCOS can lead to irregular or absent periods, increased body hair growth and difficulty getting pregnant, among other things. It is estimated that between 3% and 10% of women of childbearing age are affected, but the number of unrecorded cases is relatively large.

Vivien Boldis, a doctoral candidate at the Department of Public Health Sciences at Stockholm University.

“We do not really know how many people are actually affected. Most people seek help when they want to have children but are unable to conceive. Then it might turn out that they have PCOS”, says Vivien Boldis, a doctoral candidate at the Department of Public Health Sciences at Stockholm University.

In a new research study, she and her colleagues found a link between PCOS and smoking and obesity in the mother, as well as an association with a low score on the Agpar scale one minute after the child’s birth. Apgar is a method that allows maternity care staff in a standardized way can determine which children need more help in the transition to life outside the womb.

“Our results suggest that daughters of mothers who smoke and are overweight have a higher risk of developing PCOS later in life”, Boldis says.

PCOS is hereditary

The ultrasound images show a normal ovary (left) and a polycystic ovary (right). Picture: The Lancet

Being born to a mother with diabetes or who has a PCOS diagnosis herself is also associated with a higher incidence of the disease. An association that remained after researchers took into account a range of intergenerational and sociodemographic factors. Furthermore, women who had a sister diagnosed with PCOS were more likely to develop the disease themselves.

“Like previous studies, this study shows that PCOS is hereditary”, Boldis says.

She believes the findings of the study have implications for the prevention of PCOS.

“Firstly, since there are high genetic risks associated with the diseaseit is important to know whether it runs in the family. Secondly, one should try to avoid lifestyle-related risk factors such as smoking, obesity and if one has diabetes, make sure it is treated. Otherwise, if you have a daughter, the risk of her developing PCOS increases”, Boldis says.

Register data on nearly one million women

In the study, the researchers investigated Swedish register data on nearly one million women aged 15–40 years, born between 1973 and 1995. The prevalence of PCOS was measured using hospital registry data from 2001 to 2012, supplemented by information on the women’s parents and sisters’ health and social characteristics from population and health care records.

The research article, “Early Life Factors and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in a Swedish Birth Cohort” was published in November in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

Håkan Soold