Ovarian Treatment
Ovarian Treatment
Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder among women and it does require medical ovarian treatment. This condition, which is hormonal in nature, disrupts a woman’s menstrual cycle. PCOS can cause infertility, affects one out of twenty women in their childbearing years. Various ovarian treatments are used to treat the symptoms of PCOS.
Before going over the types of treatments used for PCOS, we will go over the different symptoms of PCOS. First, this condition is also known as polycystic ovarian disease. There are other names for PCOS such as Stein-Leventhal Syndrome, scelrocystic ovarian disease and anovulatory syndrome. No matter what you call it, one of the more obvious things about PCOS is the development of multiple ovarian cysts. These often resemble a pearl necklace
PCOS is one of the main causes of not being able to conceive amongst women. This is why some form of ovarian treatment is a necessity. PCOS blocks ovulation, resulting in irregular periods or the absence of periods completely. When someone has this disorder, their periods are extremely heavy or very light. This makes ovarian treatment very important.
PCOS also has other symptoms which include weight gain, excessive body hair, high blood pressure, insulin resistance, brown patches on the skin, fatigue, low sex drive, hair loss, depression, high cholesterol levels, anxiety, sleep apnea, and thyroid problems.
Treatment for PCOS
When a patient has PCOS, the follicles do not ripen in the ovaries. This slows down progesterone production which means that the uterus does not thicken and leads to irregular periods. Contraceptive pills are used to control the menstrual cycle and decreases the production of the male hormone which is produced due to the PCOS.
If you quit taking the pill, your periods will return to being irregular. There is another option which is to take a contraceptive pill which only contains progesterone. This will only decrease your risk for ovarian cancer, but will do nothing for the production of androgen, excessive body hair or acne.
Fertility Treatment for Those with PCOS
Because ovulation is blocked in those with PCOS, it is one of the top causes of infertility. You might want to ask about taking a fertility drug if you are trying to become pregnant. Clomiphene is one of these drugs. Although it does help a woman with PCOS to ovulate only about half of the women who take it become pregnant.
If the Clomiphene doesn’t work after a few treatments, another option would be to add Metphormin. There are also gonadtrophin injections and in vitro fertilization, but those options are much more expensive. Although it is much more costly, the IVF does have the highest rates of conception.
Obviously, the methods of ovarian treatment for PCOS, if any is chosen, will depend on a number of factors. These include such things as the person’s age, or whether or not the person is trying to have children. If you do suffer from PCOS, talk to your doctor about your symptoms and goals so that he can discuss the number of ovarian treatments available for your condition.
