ABSTRACT
Objective
To understand whether polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) represents a transient
phase, and whether an increased stroma could help to characterize the phenotype of
the ovary in adolescence.
Methods
Cross-sectional population-based study on high-school students in Cagliari, Italy.
The study population consisted of 257 normocyclic non-hyperandrogenic girls selected
from a sample of 600 healthy volunteers recruited from 2012 to 2016. Clinical examination,
medical history, blood sampling, and pelvic ultrasound (US) were performed. Postmenarchal
years and body mass index (BMI) were estimated. Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH),
luteinizing hormone (LH), 17β estradiol (E2), total testosterone (tT), delta-4-androstenedione
(A), and 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17-OHP) were measured. Ovarian volume, follicular
number per section (FNPS), and S/A ratio were measured by pelvic US.
Results
Following the Rotterdam guidelines for US PCOS diagnosis and setting the normal S/A
ratio at ≤0.3, subjects were categorized into 3 groups: (1) normal ovarian morphology
(NOM; n = 154, 60%); (2) polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) with normal S/A ratio
(PCOM-NS; n = 70, 27%); and (3) PCOM with increased S/A ratio (PCOM-IS; n = 33, 13%).
The NOM group had more postmenarchal years and a lower LH than both the PCOM groups,
and lower A and tT than the PCOM-IS group. The PCOM-NS group had fewer postmenarchal
years and lower A than the PCOM-IS group. Interestingly, unlike NOM and PCOM-NS, the
prevalence of PCOM-IS remained constant among the 3 phases of postmenarchal age (10%
vs 16% vs 15%, P = not significant).
Conclusion
This study demonstrates that PCOM can be a transient condition, whereas a high S/A
ratio is a stable US alteration present from early postmenarchal years.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 07, 2021
Accepted:
February 1,
2021
Received in revised form:
January 28,
2021
Received:
October 12,
2020
Footnotes
The authors have nothing to disclose.
Identification
Copyright
© 2021 North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
