Polycystic Ovarian Disease (PCOD)

Hi everyone!

I am Dr. Priyanka Mahawar. Today I will tell you about Polycystic Ovarian Disease. PCOD is a hormonal disorder in which your ovaries are enlarged and it contains many small fluid-filled cysts. Usually, in a normal menstrual cycle, 1 dominant follicle is formed every month and one egg is ovulated. But in case of PCOD there are male hormones which are produced in more amount than normal in a female and ovulation does not occur. The exact cause of PCOD is not known. There are many components involved in this. It might be genetic. The women who have sisters or a mother with polycystic ovarian disease are pretty supposed to have this disease. Sometimes obesity and insulin resistance can also predispose you to this disease. Women with PCOD present with the menstrual irregularities. Menstrual irregularities could be in the form of delayed periods or amenorrhea which is the total absence of periods.

Sometimes they can also present with the increased bleeding during menses. You may also complain of acne, increased facial growth or growth of hair on the chest. You may also have excessive hair loss, thinning of hair or male like the pattern of baldness. Sometimes you may also come with an abrupt weight gain. Sometimes women who are trying to conceive they may have the delay in conception or inability to conceive also. Whenever you have any of the above-mentioned symptoms you consult your doctor. She may advise you some blood test which will include hormonal evaluation and insulin resistance, whether you have it or not. Along with this a pelvic scan. In the pelvic scan, the polycystic ovarian disease morphology is easily identified and your diagnosis is confirmed by both the blood test and the pelvic scan. Now coming to the treatment part of the PCOD. The PCOD is a treatable condition but it is not curable.

It cannot be cured completely. Lifestyle modification is the mainstay of the treatment of the PCOD. Your diet should be low-calorie diet so that you do not increase weight. The junk food which contains a high amount of calories should be avoided in these diseases. A bit of exercise in daily routine helps to help a lot in treating this disease. The medicines involved treatment of this disease depends on whether you are married or unmarried, you want to conceive or you do not want to conceive. If you are not married or you do not want to conceive the oral contraceptive pills can be given to treat this disease. But if you want to conceive but you are not ovulating then there are many drugs which will help you in ovulation and conceiving also. If you are found to be insulin resistant in this case, then Metformin can also be used. The long term effect of this disease is that you are predisposed to Type-2 Diabetes mellitus, hypertension, increased cholesterol levels and Endometrial hyperplasia. The take-home message from this video is, if you have any of the symptoms of this disease, you consult your gynecologist, avoid junk food and include exercise in your daily routine. 

Thank you!