title: Increased arterial stiffness in mildly-hypertensive women with polycystic ovary syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as obesity, hyperinsulinemia, and dyslipidemia, are commonly observed in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), impairment of vascular function is still controversial. We evaluated the vascular function in young women with PCOS.
  
  
  METHODS
  We evaluated arterial stiffness in 54 women with PCOS and 24 healthy control women using a volume-plethysmographic apparatus equipped with a multi-element applanation tonometry sensor for the left common carotid artery and studied the correlations of various factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no significant difference in age or body mass index between the controls and the women with PCOS. These women with PCOS had a significantly higher serum testosterone and C-reactive protein levels and showed insulin resistance and dyslipidemia. The mean blood pressure in women with PCOS was within the normal range, but still significantly higher than those in the controls. Women with PCOS had a significantly higher brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) than that for the controls (P < 0.02), whereas there was no significant difference in the carotid augmentation index between the two groups. Stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that blood pressure influences the baPWV in women with PCOS. Arterial stiffness evaluated using the baPWV in mildly-hypertensive women (systolic blood pressure ≥120 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mmHg) with PCOS was significantly higher than that in the controls or normotensive women with PCOS.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Early changes in vascular function were detected in mildly-hypertensive women with PCOS. Lifestyle interventions to prevent hypertension, such as diet and exercise, should be the first-line of treatment in women with PCOS.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama University, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Okayama University Hospital, Okayama, Japan.
authors.forename: Aiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.forename: Yayoi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Emi
authors.forename: Miwa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Matsuda
authors.lastname: Sharula
authors.forename: Yasuhiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kamada
authors.forename: Chebib
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chekir
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hiramatsu
authors.forename: Mikiya
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakatsuka
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007564:Japan; D011085:Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / Q000150:complications*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014463:Ultrasonography; D059289:Vascular Stiffness