Diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a diagnosis of exclusion, with other androgen excess and ovulatory dysfunction disorders to be ruled out. There are 3 principal features of the syndrome, including hyperandrogenism, ovulatory dysfunction, and polycystic ovarian morphology. These features have been included in slightly different permutations in the 3 criteria currently available to diagnose PCOS, including that of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 1990, Rotterdam 2003, and the Androgen Excess Society 2006. Overall, at least 1 in 15 women of reproductive age will be affected by PCOS, making this disorder the most common endocrine abnormality in this age group, with a health burden of over 4 billion dollars in the United States alone.
Trivax
Bradley
B
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Azziz
Ricardo
R
D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D011085:Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D015995:Prevalence; D014481:United States