Polycystic ovary disease (PCOD) is a disease that impacts a woman's hormone levels.
Women with PCOD create higher than average amounts of male hormones. This imbalance of hormones leads their body to skip menstrual periods and makes it challenging for them to get pregnant.
PCOD also causes hair growth on the body and the face and baldness. It can also direct to long-term health problems such as heart disease and diabetes.
Diabetes drugs(which battle insulin resistance, a PCOD symptom) and birth control pills can aid fix the imbalance of hormones and enhance symptoms.
PCOD is a problem with hormones that pertains to women during their childbearing years(ages 15 to 44). Between 2.2 and 26.7% of women in this age criteria have PCOS.
Many women have PCOD but aren't aware of it. According to one study, up to 70 percent of women with PCOD hadn't been diagnosed.
PCOD concerns a woman's ovaries, the reproductive organs that create estrogen and progesterone- hormones function the menstrual cycle. The ovaries also generate a small number of male hormones known as androgens.
The ovaries discharge eggs to be fertilized by a man's sperm. The discharge of an egg every month is known as ovulation.
Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH), formed in the pituitary gland, manage ovulation.
FSH stimulates the ovary to create a follicle — a sac that comprises an egg — and then LH triggers the ovary to discharge a mature egg.
PCOS is a "syndrome," or group of symptoms that concerns the ovaries and ovulation. Its three main aspects are:
- cysts in the ovaries
- high stages of male hormones
- uneven or skipped periods
In PCOD, many minutes, fluid-filled sacs cultivate inside the ovaries. The word "polycystic" means "a lot of cysts."
These sacs are, in fact, follicles, each one comprising an immature egg. The eggs never mature enough to activate ovulation.
The lack of ovulation varies levels of estrogen, progesterone, FSH, and LH. Progesterone levels are lower than usual, while androgen levels are higher than average.
Extra male hormones interrupt the menstrual cycle, so women with PCOD get fewer periods than usual.
PCOD isn't a novel condition. Italian physician Antonio Vallisneri first portrayed its symptoms in 1721
Some women begin getting symptoms around the time of their first period. Others only find out they have PCOD after they've gained a lot of weight or they've had a problem getting pregnant.
The most widespread PCOD symptoms are:
- Irregular periods. A deficiency of ovulation puts off the uterine lining from shedding every month. Some women with PCOD get less than eight periods a year or none at all.
- Heavy bleeding. The uterine lining puts up for a more extended period, so the periods you do get can be more severe than standard.
- Hair growth. More than 70 percent of women with this circumstance grow hair on their face and body, including their back, belly, and chest. Overload hair growth is known as hirsutism.
- Acne. Male hormones can create the skin oilier than usual and cause breakouts in regions such as the face, chest, and upper back.
- Weight gain. Up to 80 percent of women with PCOD are flabby or have obesity.
- Male pattern baldness. Hair on the scalp gets thinner and might drop out.
- Darkening of the skin. Dark patches of skin can form in body tucks like those on the neck, in the groin, and under the breasts.
- Headaches. Hormone changes can activate headaches in some women.
PCOD treatment focuses on running your concerns, like infertility, hirsutism, acne, or obesity. Particular treatment might engross lifestyle changes or prescriptions.
One of the most general reasons a woman has difficulty getting pregnant is a state known as polycystic ovary disease (PCOD).
It is a hormone issue that interacts with the reproductive system.
When you have PCOD, you ovaries get larger than normal. These huge ovaries can have many tiny cysts that comprise immature eggs.
Hormone Differences
PCOD causes a woman's body to generate higher than general levels of androgens. These are hormones that are generally thought of as male hormones, because men have much large levels of androgens than women.
Androgens are significant in the creation of male sex organs and other male traits.
In women, androgens are generally converted into the estrogen hormone.
Ovulation Problems
Great levels of androgens obstruct with the development of your eggs and the normal release of your eggs. This method is called ovulation.
If a healthy egg isn't released, it can't be fertilized by sperm which denoted that you can't get pregnant. PCOS can cause to skip your menstrual period or have uneven periods. This can be one of the primary signs that you have an issue known as PCOD.
Regulating Your Period
Luckily, there are some treatments that can aid women with PCOD have healthy pregnancies.
Your doctor may recommend birth control pills that comprise man-made versions of the hormones estrogen and progestin. These pills can aid control your menstrual cycle by lessening androgen production.
If you can't bear a combination birth control pill, your doctor may suggest a progestin only pill.
You can consume this pill about 2 weeks a month, for about 1-2 months. It's also made to aid control your peroid.
Medicines to Help You Ovulate
You won't be able to get a hold of pregnancy while you are taking birth control pills for PCOD. But if you require help ovulating so that you can become pregnant, some medicines might help:
- Clomiphene (Clomid, Serophene) is an anti-estrogen drug that you take at the start of your cycle.
- If clomiphene doesn’t aid with ovulation, you may be recommended the diabetes drug metformin.
- If clomiphene and metformin don’t function, your doctor may recommend a medication comprising a follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and a luteinizing hormone (LH). You obtain this medicine in a shot.
- One other drug that aids with ovulation is letrozole (Femara). It’s sometimes used when other medications aren’t efficient.
- If you have PCOD and you desire to get pregnant, you should work with a doctor who is a professional in reproductive medicine. This kind of doctor is also recognized as a fertility specialist.
- A specialist will help make sure you get the correct dose of medicines, assist with any problems you have, and list regular checkups and ultrasounds to see how you’re doing. (An ultrasound is a machine that uses sound waves to generate images of the inside of your body. It’s a painless process that can trail the growth and expansion of your baby).
Lifestyle Changes
- For some women, gaining a lot of weight can influence their hormones. In turn, losing weight, if you’re obese or overweight, may aid get your hormones back to usual levels. Losing 10% of your body weight may help your menstrual cycle become more conventional. This should help you get a hold of pregnancy.
- In common, living a healthier lifestyle with a better diet, regular exercise, no smoking, less stress, and control of diabetes and other medical conditions should perk up your fertility odds.
- Keep in mind, if your period isn’t occurring when it should, or you’ve already been diagnosed with PCOD, work closely with your doctor to aid get it under control.
References:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/pcos/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20353443
https://www.webmd.com/infertility-and-reproduction/polycystic-ovary-syndrome-fertility