Cardiovascular risks and metabolic syndrome in Hong Kong Chinese women with polycystic ovary syndrome

BACKGROUND: Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) frequently exhibit central obesity, glucose intolerance, atherogenic dyslipidaemia and hypertension which are characteristic features of the metabolic syndrome (MetS). METHODS: A total of 295 premenopausal Chinese women with PCOS diagnosed by the Rotterdam criteria (mean age: 30.2 +/- 6.4 years) and 98 control subjects without PCOS were evaluated for prevalence of MetS and cardiovascular risk factors, including dyslipidaemia and dysglycaemia. RESULTS: Using the 2005 modified Adult Treatment Panel III criteria, MetS (presence of three or more risk factors) was found in 24.9% of PCOS women compared to 3.1% of controls. The prevalence of MetS in PCOS women increased from 16.7% at under 30 years of age to 53.3% at over 40 years. MetS was also more prevalent in overweight and obese (41.3%) than normal-weight PCOS women (0.9%). However, multivariate regression analysis showed that women with PCOS had a 5-fold increase in risk of MetS (odds ratio 4.90; 95% confidence interval: 1.35-17.84) compared with women without PCOS even after controlling for age and BMI, suggesting PCOS alone is an independent risk factor for MetS. CONCLUSIONS: There is high prevalence of MetS in Hong Kong Chinese women with PCOS despite their relatively young age. Recognition of these cardiometabolic risk factors requires a high level of awareness in conjunction with early and regular screening.