Important
It is possible that the main title of the report Polycystic Ovary Syndrome is not the name you expected. Please check the synonyms listing to find the alternate name(s) and disorder subdivision(s) covered by this report.

Synonyms

• Bilateral Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
• Ovarian Hyperthecosis
• Ovarian Syndrome
• PCOS
• Polycystic Bilateral Ovarian Syndrome
• POS
• Sclerocystic Ovarian Disease
• Stein-Leventhal Syndrome
• anovulation with hyperandrogenism

Disorder Subdivisions

• None

General Discussion

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects women and is a complex of symptoms that are not necessarily all present in all cases. Some, but not all, affected women have multiple cysts on the ovaries (polycystic ovaries). Other characteristics include the absence of menstruation (amenorrhea) or irregular menstruation, failure of the ovary to release eggs (anovulation), elevated levels of the male hormones known as androgens (hyperandrogenism), excessive amounts of body hair (hirsutism), a high rate of miscarriage, and infertility. Three criteria often used for a diagnosis are menstrual irregularity, hyperandrogenism, and exclusion of other disease. There is some evidence that PCOS is an inherited condition.

Resources

National Women's Health Network
514 10th Street NW
Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20004
USA
Tel: (202)628-7814
Fax: (202)347-1168
Email: nwhn@nwhn.org
Internet: http://www.womenshealthnetwork.org

OBGYN.net: The Obstetrics & Gynecology Network
Web Site on the Internet
Email: info@obgyn.net
Internet: http://www.obgyn.net

NIH/National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
31 Center Dr
Building 31, Room 2A32
MSC2425
Bethesda, MD 20892
Tel: (301)496-5133
Fax: (301)496-7101
Internet: http://www.nichd.nih.gov/

Hormone Foundation
8401 Connecticut Ave
Suite 900
Chevy Chase, MD 20815
Fax: (310)941-0259
Tel: (800)467-6663
Email: hormone@endo-society.org
Internet: http://www.hormone.org

MUMS National Parent-to-Parent Network
150 Custer Court
Green Bay, WI 54301-1243
USA
Tel: (920)336-5333
Fax: (920)339-0995
Tel: (877)336-5333
Email: mums@netnet.net
Internet: http://www.netnet.net/mums/

Genetic and Rare Diseases (GARD) Information Center
PO Box 8126
Gaithersburg, MD 20898-8126
Tel: (301)251-4925
Fax: (301)251-4911
Tel: (888)205-2311
TDD: (888)205-3223
Email: ordr@od.nih.gov
Internet: http://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/Default.aspx

Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia Support Group
PO Box 66
Waihi
Hauraki, 3641
New Zealand
Tel: +64 3 3584 507
Fax: +64 3 3584 506
Tel: 0800 224 698
Email: CAHNZ@snap.net.nz
Internet: http://www.cah.org.nz/

For a Complete Report

For a Complete Report

This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc. ® (NORD). A copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html