Polycystic ovary syndrome is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes: results from a long-term prospective study.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) recently has been identified as a risk factor associated with type 2 diabetes. However, the evidence derives from cross-sectional observational studies, retrospective studies, or short-term prospective studies. This long-term prospective study of a large cohort of women with PCOS, followed from youth to middle age, aimed at estimating, for the first time, the incidence and potential predictors of type 2 diabetes in this population. A total of 255 women with PCOS were followed for at least 10 years (mean follow-up 16.9 years). Six women were patients with diabetes at baseline, and another 42 women developed type 2 diabetes during the follow-up. The incidence rate of type 2 diabetes in the study population was 1.05 per 100 person-years. The age-standardized prevalence of diabetes at the end of follow-up was 39.3%, which is significantly higher with respect to that of the general Italian female population of a similar age (5.8%). The likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes significantly increased as BMI, fasting glucose, and glucose area under the curve at baseline increased and significantly decreased as sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) levels at follow-up increased. This study demonstrates that the risk of type 2 diabetes is markedly elevated in middle-aged women with PCOS and suggests including BMI, glucose, and SHBG-circulating levels in the risk stratification.
Endocrinology Unit, Department of Clinical Medicine, St Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Alessandra
A
Gambineri
Laura
L
Patton
Paola
P
Altieri
Uberto
U
Pagotto
Carmine
C
Pizzi
Lamberto
L
Manzoli
Renato
R
Pasquali
D000328:Adult; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008875:Middle Aged; D011085:Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / Q000150:complications*; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin / Q000378:metabolism
D001786:Blood Glucose; D012738:Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin