English

Abstract

BACKGROUND Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the main causes for infertility. Many studies show that PCOS is associated with production of some inflammatory factors like CRP and IL - 18, which has a prognostic significance in analysing the risk of future cardiovascular diseases (CVD). American heart association (AHA) has put forward C - reactive protein (CRP) as a clinically useful marker for risk of cardiovascular diseases. Previous studies show an increased incidence of high levels of CRP in PCOS patients as compared to controls. If such an association is proved in our population, CRP can be used as an ideal marker to screen apparently normal young PCOS women for CVD. So we wanted to assess the CRP levels in PCOS through this study. METHODS This was a cross sectional study conducted in the outpatient departments of Infertility and Gynaecology in a tertiary care hospital of South India, from 2018 to 2019. It was conducted among women of age 25 - 35 years who were diagnosed to have PCOS according to Rotterdam’s criteria, satisfying inclusion criteria. Women of age 25 - 35 years without PCOS were taken as comparison group. The study was conducted in 50 PCOS women and 50 women without PCOS were taken as comparison group. Data was obtained with the help of appropriate questionnaire and laboratory investigations. CRP level was assessed by Immunoturbidimetric method. RESULTS CRP was found to be significantly elevated (P < 0.01) in PCOS (1.87 ± 2.16) when compared to women without PCOS (0.16 ± 0.4). CONCLUSIONS CRP levels were significantly higher in PCOS women as compared to women without PCOS. Thus CRP can be used as tool to assess inflammatory state in PCOS. KEYWORDS Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, C Reactive Protein, Inflammation