Prevalence of metabolic syndrome in women with polycystic ovary syndrome and the factors associated: A cross sectional study at a tertiary care center in Hyderabad, south-eastern India

Abstract

Background and aimsMetabolic syndrome (MetS) and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are two interrelated but distinct endocrine problems with several health consequences secondary to insulin resistance. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of MetS in women with PCOS. MethodsThis was a cross sectional study carried out from May 2017 to October 2017 at the gynecology outpatient clinic of a tertiary care private hospital in Hyderabad, India. Eligible women diagnosed with PCOS according to Rotterdam criteria were enrolled. The primary outcome was the prevalence of MetS diagnosed by the modified NCEP ATP III criteria. ResultsThe study comprised 382 patients with a mean age of 26.8 ± 5.3 years. MetS was present in 147 (38.5%) women with PCOS. The most frequently observed individual components of MetS were increased waist circumference and decreased HDL cholesterol. When predictors for MetS were analyzed by multivariate regression, BMI (aOR 1.14; 1.06–1.23; p ≪0.001) and age (aOR 1.12; 1.06–1.17; p ≪0.001) were significantly associated with MetS; however, the effect size was modest. ConclusionA high prevalence of MetS was observed in women with PCOS at this tertiary center in Hyderabad, with abdominal obesity and low HDL cholesterol as predominant components. We believe that universal screening of all PCOS women is a reasonable option.