I need a Gynecologist's advice about Poly Cystic Ovarian Disease.?

Question

I am a 17 year old girl who was diagnosed with Poly Cystic Ovarian Disease about 6 mos. ago. When I was 11, I had a tortianed ovary, and had to have it removed. I haven't had a period for about a year now. I was put on Glucophage, because my doctor told me that the PCOD caused high insulin levels. She also said, that about 2 to 4 weeks of starting the Glucophage, that my period would come, and I still haven't had one. I was never really explained the disease, and she left me confused. I don't know if this could hurt my chances of having children, but I believe it could. I would also like to know if I should be put on Birth Controll, or even have a hystorectomy... Any advice would help... Thank you!!!

Answer 1

Try going to www.webmd.com or discoveryhealth.com. I know what you are going through. You shouldnt have to have a hystorectomy but in some cases however (like my mothers) you may. I have heard that Birth Control does help but it does reduce your ability to have children. My mother also takes Glucophage for her PCOD however it isnt just for PCOD either, she has diabetes, and various other problems. I know this isnt much but i hope it can shed some light on your dillema. And good luck to you!!!

Answer 2

i'm not a doc, but i am a fellow PCOD sufferer......pcod causes something called "insulin-resistance" it means that your pancrease produces the insulin, but your body doesn't know what to do with it b/c of the hormonal imbalance, hence the glucophage......it can also cause thyroid problems and a few other health problems......hysterectomy is NOT nessecary and really a bad thing unless you have cancer or endometriosis....birth control pills will help you have a period (not glucophage!) and they will also help with the cysts b/c they stop ovulation, and with no ovulation there is no cyst production....another thing that has helped me personally is to follow an organic diet.....i don't put any food into my body that has been genetically modified or has added hormones.....that means no beef, and only organic milk and dairy (fds regulations no longer allow the use of hormones/steriods in the use of poultry and pork b/c studies have shown it can couse health problems, what a shock!)
i hope this has helped.....and i would also suggest finding a new doctor...i recently switched to a gyno who specializes in ovarian disorders and he has helped me SO much

Answer 3

A hysterectomy is unnecessary. Cystic ovaries could make it difficult to have a child in the future, but when caught early, it's pretty good chances that everything will go normally. I'm not an OB/GYN so make sure you still talk to yours, but I do know a bit about this disorder as I was improperly mis-diagnosed with it twice. They still don't know what is really wrong with me. Anyway, I was told birth control helps because it raises your estrogen levels which will help with the cysts. I think though that you need to see your doctor if you haven't gotten your period in a year. Go make an appointment and good luck.

Answer 4

Hello,
An Ovarian cyst is a collection of fluids surrounded by a slender wall within the ovary. Ovarian cysts raise concern among many women, especially in childbearing age. While the majority of ovarian cysts are simply functional in nature, some ovarian cysts can turn out to be cancerous. The first step of correctly diagnosing and treating ovarian cysts is to identify the cause of the disease. However, there is no single cause of ovarian cysts. Ovarian cysts can be triggered by a variety of primary factors and secondary factors. It is imperative to understand these different factors in order to seek appropriate treatment.

If you want to know more and get rid (naturally) of your Ovarian cyst you should read this interesting books http://ovariancysts.toptips.org
Have a nice day

Answer 5

The above posters answered your questions well. I just feel bad for you, because of your young age, your doctor has chosen not to explain PCOS fully to you. This is terrible. I am sure someone my age (23), they would sit down and go over every detail with me. Well I would make them anyway. Is there anyway you can go to another OBGYN, or even another one who is female. They tend to be more compassionate. Again, please feel free to ask them any and all questions. they should remember that you are the one with PCOS, and just because you are young, you deserve to know all about it.

Answer 6

There is a fabulous web site/message board all on PCOS....
here is the link...http://www.soulcysters.net/

Answer 7

Here's a link that might help answer your questions.
http://www.drmalpani.com/book/chapter15.html

Answer 8

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is an extremely common endocrine disorder. The prevalence of PCOS is conservatively estimated to occur in 5-10% of reproductive-aged women. This disease has been recognized since at least the 1930’s. While a clinical diagnosis of PCOS may encompass several distinct subsets of patients, most experts in the field agree that there are some common clinical and laboratory aspects of this common disorder.

Most women with PCOS have ovulatory dysfunction or absent ovulation. If the egg is not released from the ovary each month in a normal fashion, this can obviously lead to infertility. Anovulation may also manifest itself by infrequent or irregular menstrual cycles. In the absence of ovulation, the ovary does not make the hormone progesterone in the second half of the menstrual cycle. Without progesterone, the lining of the uterus is not shed in an efficient and timely manner. After a number of years, this can place women with PCOS at risk for an abnormal buildup of the lining of the uterus (endometrial hyperplasia) . For this reason, women with PCOS who are not trying to get pregnant should be treated with progesterone-like medications to induce a normal menstrual period at least every 2-3 months.

Another common feature to PCOS is clinical or laboratory hyperandrogenism. This means that women with PCOS have either increased circulating amounts of or increased responsiveness to male hormones like testosterone or DHEAS. This may result in oily skin or acne and excess hair on the face, between the breasts, or on the lower abdomen. In order for the diagnosis of PCOS to be made, these abnormalities must exist in the absence of other related hormonal disorders. A qualified doctor can distinguish these disorders.

Most women with PCOS also display changes in the ovaries as viewed by ultrasound. In fact, the name itself describes the typical ultrasound findings seen in this disorder: poly (many), cystic (small collections of fluid). When the eggs in the ovaries do not develop to maturity, many small "follicles" (small fluid-filled sacs containing immature eggs) develop and can be seen on ultrasound. The ovaries of women PCOS are often enlarged as well. However, most women with PCOS do not have the kind of "cysts on the ovary" that we normally think of as problematic or requiring surgery.

Another common feature of PCOS is increased body weight. Women with PCOS tend to be heavy and have trouble losing weight. One underlying mechanism behind the ovulatory irregularity and the obesity is probably insulin resistance. This means that the cells of women with PCOS do not respond as well to their bodies’ own insulin as those of someone without PCOS. This puts women with PCOS at higher risk for developing diabetes during pregnancy or later in life.

Treatment Strategies

Treatment for PCOS depends largely on an individual woman’s fertility desires. For those women not desiring immediate pregnancy, there are basically two options to help regulate menstrual cyclicity and prevent endometrial hyperplasia. The most common option is the use of oral contraceptives (birth control pills; BCPs). BCPs will give most women normal bleeding patterns and prevent hyperplasia. Since ovulation can occur unpredictably in women with PCOS, BCPs also provide adequate contraception. The hormones in BCPs will also help reduce acne and facial hair in most patients with PCOS. In women who do not require oral contraception, progesterone given for 10-12 days every 30-60 days will induce a reliable menses.

In women for whom unwanted hair growth is particularly bothersome, significant improvement can be obtained with a combination of medications. As already mentioned, BCPs are extremely useful in this regard. Other medications may include drugs that reduce the secretion of androgen hormones or interfere with their action in the skin and hair cells.

Alternatively, for women with PCOS who desire pregnancy, ovulation induction is often necessary. This involves medical treatment in order to help the ovaries release an egg each month in a reliable fashion. For many women this involves simple and relatively inexpensive oral medication. Others may require more intensive and expensive therapies utilizing injectable medications. For full coverage of ovulation inducing agents go to the section on ovulation drugs.

Finally, there are some new therapeutic options available for women with PCOS. As already mentioned, insulin resistance may represent the underlying problem for a lot of PCOS patients. A relatively new class of drugs that help sensitize the cells to the action of insulin, thereby reducing insulin resistance, has recently been shown to help induce ovulation in women with PCOS who failed previous simple therapies. Certain of these agents may also help women with PCOS to lose weight. Some of the more common drugs are: Metformin (Glucophage) and Troglitazone (Rezulin). Rezulin can cause hepatic damage. Patients taking this medication must have blood work every month. Glucophage is much simpler to administer and does not require regular blood work.

In women who cannot tolerate oral medications or have failed several different regimens of medication, surgical induction of ovulation can also be attempted. So-called "ovarian drilling" utilizes laser or electrosurgical techniques to place small holes in the ovaries in an effort to normalize the hormonal environment and allow ovulation to occur.

PCOS is a common readily treatable disorder. The challenge is for the doctor to meet the specific needs of the patient during her entire life span.

For more information about PCOS please visit the PCO support web site at: http://pcosupport.org. This site is informative and contains detailed information about the condition.

~I know that I just pasted a lot of information here for you, but I think it will be helpful in answering your question. Hope all works out well for you. Good luck :)