Do you have an irregular cycle for a long time? You want a baby, but you can not get pregnant? Perhaps the cause is a disease that affects up to 15% of young women. It's about polycystic ovaries. How to recognize this disease? How to treat it? And in general, what is polycystic ovary and what are the consequences - we'll talk about this.
Almost every sixth woman of 25-45 years old suffers from this disease, and half of them do not even know it. The exact causes of polycystic ovary are not known, and the consequences are extremely unpleasant. It is only known that the development of this disease is genetic, that is, a woman can be genetically predisposed to it. The syndrome includes excessive activity of male hormones - androgens, which disrupt the menstrual cycle. As a result, the cycle becomes irregular, menstruation - rare, and the huge problem with pregnancy becomes a real disaster for a woman. The good news is that polycystic ovaries are successfully treated. The main thing is to place an accurate diagnosis and conduct appropriate therapy at the earliest possible stage.
What is the problem?
Before you treat, you need to know exactly what polycystic ovary is and what the consequences of this disease are. A healthy woman has a whole bunch of eggs in the ovaries. They are hidden in the blistered follicle. They ripen in them. When the egg is ready for fertilization, the follicle bursts and releases them so that they enter the uterine tube and then into the uterus. In case of "failure" of the androgen hormone, maturation of the egg and rupture of the follicle is prevented. Eggs remain in it - they are like hostages. Immature follicles in the ovary accumulate, forming numerous small cysts. Hence the name of the disease is polycystic ovary syndrome.
Symptoms of polycystic ovary
Symptoms can be misleading. And this is the main problem. Most women with polycystic ovaries suffer from irregularities in the menstrual cycle. And sometimes menstrual periods disappear altogether. But the disease can also develop in women who do not have visible problems with the cycle. But, in any case, the disease partially or even completely blocks ovulation, causing problems with pregnancy. This is one of the most obvious signals. Other symptoms that may indicate polycystic ovary:
- Sharp changes in weight, for example, when a woman suddenly becomes fat for no apparent reason for a few pounds a week. There is a tendency of accumulation of excess fat around the waist, oily skin becomes the face, the problem becomes acne. Sometimes, due to excess concentration of male hormones, a woman has excessive hairiness (especially on the chin, chest, legs, abdomen);
- Unexplained and sudden pain in the pelvic region - probably associated with an increase in ovaries;
- Premenstrual syndrome is much more pronounced than in other (healthy) women. Symptoms include pain in the sacrum, bloating, mood swings.
If you have identified any of these signs, tell your gynecologist about it. Polycystic ovaries can be treated. After the proper treatment, many women even managed to become pregnant. However, problems with pregnancy are not the only ones associated with this disease. There are still no less unpleasant consequences of this ailment. Namely:
Insulin resistance - this occurs in about 50% of patients, especially those suffering from overweight and obesity. This leads to a poor susceptibility of cells to insulin. This hormone is essential for the transfer and use of glucose. A prolonged, excessively high level of sugar in the blood leads ultimately to the development of diabetes mellitus;
Sleep apnea - trouble breathing during sleep. This is not necessarily a woman suffering from ordinary snoring (uneven, with interruptions at moments of sleep). A woman who has never snored before in a dream, wakes up sleepy and tired (also because of hypoxia). In polycystic ovaries, sleep apnea syndrome, as a rule, affects women who are overweight. This is because the excess fat, accumulating around the waist, compresses the diaphragm.
Research and diagnosis of polycystic ovary
To diagnose this disease, it is necessary to exclude other abnormalities, such as excessive secretion of adrenal cortex hormones (androgens in particular) or the pituitary gland produces an excess of prolactin, which can inhibit ovulation. Your doctor will also determine at least 2 of the following 3 criteria:
- Irregular monthly or their total absence - that's why it is so important for you to regularly conduct a special "female" calendar;
- Multiple cysts in the ovaries - they can easily be detected if the doctor directs you to a vaginal ultrasound. This is absolutely painless examination. Experts immediately see on the computer screen the bubbles at different stages of maturation. In the case of polycystic ovaries, numerous small cysts can be seen - sometimes there are so many that they resemble the ovarian lobules inside the ovary;
- Signs of excessive levels of androgens - they are found not only on the basis of external signs (for example, hirsutism).
First of all, the level of hormones in the blood - testosterone and androstenedione - is investigated;
In order to eventually diagnose correctly, and also to choose the best treatment, your doctor can prescribe additional blood tests to determine the level of hormones associated with the cycle and ovulation. Also, a special test can be carried out that can determine the number of immature follicles and assess the chances of pregnancy. Such tests are already conducted in all clinics of large cities, although only recently, such diagnostics were not available to us.
Treatment gives hope
Treatment depends on the severity of the symptoms and what we want to achieve. Young women who have not yet decided to become pregnant can use modern hormonal drugs that normalize the cycle and act as contraceptives. The intake of binary contraceptive pills also reduces other symptoms associated with excessive activity of male sex hormones. This is not harmful even for very young girls. After all, the sooner they can regulate their cycle, the more chances they have in the future to give birth to healthy children.
In women who want to become pregnant, ovulation is induced (often after stopping the use of contraceptives, it happens spontaneously). And in patients with insulin resistance, in addition to hormone therapy, it is usually necessary to use regulation of blood sugar levels. For this, the patient is given a special diet and drugs that increase the body's tolerance to insulin.
Treatment should be carried out even if you do not plan to have a family and give birth to children in the near future. Polycystic ovary has such consequences as an increased risk of developing diabetes, hypertension and atherosclerosis, or endometrial cancer (the mucous membrane of the uterus). In addition, while a woman is dealing with excessive activity of male hormones, she has symptoms such as hirsutism, skin problems and weight gain.
Diet shown with polycystic ovary
If a woman has insulin resistance or obesity, her diet is recommended based on foods that do not cause a surge in blood sugar (eg white bread, sweets, etc.). Here is a cheat sheet that will help you make a menu. In this case, try to plan food so that there are 4-5 times small portions a day.
Mushrooms
You can eat any mushrooms: salted, pickled, stewed.
Vegetables
Eat more: lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, onions, cabbage, legumes, raw carrots, and other vegetables (including marinated)
Avoid: boiled carrots, potatoes and green beans.
Bread and cereals
Choose for yourself bread only from wholemeal flour, and from the grains take brown (brown) rice and buckwheat.
Avoid: white bread, wheat, cereals and long-grain white rice.
Fruit
Choose apples, grapefruits, strawberries, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, apricots.
Avoid: watermelons, bananas, raisins of canned fruit and sweet juices.
Dairy
It is better, if it is buttermilk, low-fat yogurt without sugar, skim curd and skim milk.
Avoid: sweetened whole milk and dairy desserts.