title: Symptom patterns and phenotypic subgrouping of women with polycystic ovary syndrome: association between endocrine characteristics and metabolic aberrations.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  What are the potential endocrine characteristics related to risk and severity of metabolic disturbances in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)?
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Women with PCOS could be subtyped into four subgroups according to heterogeneous endocrine characteristics and the major predictive endocrine factors for metabolic aberrations among different subgroups were free androgen index (FAI) and luteinizing hormone (LH) levels.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Women diagnosed with PCOS present with highly heterogeneous phenotypes, including endocrine and metabolic aberrations. Different strategies have been proposed to predict the metabolic outcomes but whether the endocrine factors can solely predict the metabolic aberrations is still inconclusive.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study including 460 patients recruited from a reproductive endocrinology outpatient clinic of a tertiary medical center.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with PCOS diagnosed according to the 2003 Rotterdam criteria were studied. Clinical history recorded by questionnaires, anthropometric measurements, biochemistry tests after an overnight fast, and pelvic ultrasonography were collected from all patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Applying a matrix visualization and clustering approach (generalized association plots), the patients were divided into four distinct clusters according to the correlation with four endocrine parameters. Each cluster exhibited specific endocrine characteristics and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MS) was significantly different among the clusters (P < 0.0001). The high-risk subgroups for MS included one cluster with higher mean (SD) FAI (39.6 (14.7) in cluster 4), and another one with lower mean (SD) FAI (10 (6.4) in cluster 2). A common endocrine characteristic of these two metabolically unhealthy clusters was relatively lower LH level. Contrarily, higher LH level (≧15 mIU/ml) during early follicular phase was found to be the best indicator of the metabolically healthy cluster (cluster 1). While high FAI level did correlate with more severe metabolic aberrations, high LH level showed better predictive value than low FAI level to become a metabolically healthy cluster.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results should be applied to other populations with caution due to racial or environmental differences. Another limitation is a lack of normal non-PCOS control in our study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Stratifying women with PCOS into meaningful subtypes could provide a better understanding of related risk factors and potentially enable the design and delivery of more effective screening and treatment intervention.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  This study was supported by grant NSC 100-2314-B002-027-MY3 from the National Science Council of Taiwan.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Nil.
authors: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, National Taiwan University Hospital Hsin-Chu Branch, Hsin-Chu 300, Taiwan.
authors: Chu-Chun
authors: CC
authors: Huang
authors: Institute of Statistical Science, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan.
authors: Yin-Jing
authors: YJ
authors: Tien
authors: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei 100, Taiwan mjchen04@ntu.edu.tw.
authors: Mei-Jou
authors: MJ
authors: Chen
authors: Institute of Statistical Science, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan.
authors: Chun-Houh
authors: CH
authors: Chen
authors: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei 100, Taiwan.
authors: Hong-Nerng
authors: HN
authors: Ho
authors: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei 100, Taiwan.
authors: Yu-Shih
authors: YS
authors: Yang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000728:Androgens / Q000097:blood; D000886:Anthropometry; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004703:Endocrine System; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone / Q000097:blood; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D010641:Phenotype; D011085:Polycystic Ovary Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D062606:Tertiary Care Centers; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000728:Androgens; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone
keywords: PCOS; SHBG; generalized association plots; metabolic syndrome