Will having polycystic ovaries stop me getting pregnant?
CONSULTANT obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr Karen Morton, founder of Dr Morton’s The Medical Helpine, says...
“THE answer to the question is: it can do. There is an enormous difference between women whose ovaries are or have been rather lazy, and women who have true polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
“A ‘polycystic ovary’ is the term given to describe an ultrasound appearance when the ovaries are a tiny bit bigger than average, and have multiple pea-sized beads of fluid around their edge. These are immature egg follicles. This is not troublesome in any way.
“Polycystic ovary syndrome is a whole person problem, with several metabolic (body chemistry) features which lead to the classical features of being overweight, having infrequent – if any – periods, and difficulty with carbohydrate metabolism. Women often have male pattern hair-growth problems too.
“There are several hormone and other tests which help make the diagnosis, such as slightly raised testosterone and a low level of a protein called globulin, which grips onto the testosterone so it can’t stimulate the hair root.
“Treatment should be for the thing which bothers the woman the most. By that I mean, if weight is the main issue, a low carbohydrate diet [might help] and she may need treatment with metformin.
“If a woman’s overweight, losing just 5% of weight will dramatically improve the way your ovaries work.
“Medicine to block testosterone receptors on the hair root will reduce facial hair.
Lazy ovaries can be driven harder with clomiphene tablets, or sometimes puncturing some of the small cysts (immature follicles) by putting a telescope into the abdomen (laparoscopy) and passing a needle into three or four of the cysts. This reduces the pressure in the ovary.
“If the polycystic ovaries do not respond, treatment with injected medicines may be needed.
“To cut to the chase on fertility, polycystic ovaries are unlikely to be a cause of infertility – unless you are having infrequent periods, in which case, treatment is possible.”