Characterization of metabolic changes in the phenotypes of women with polycystic ovary syndrome in a large Mediterranean population from Sicily.

Objective: To better characterize the metabolic alterations in various phenotypes of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) in a large homogeneous (Sicilian) Mediterranean population with a low prevalence of obesity.

Design: Retrospective study.

Patients: A total of 1215 consecutively evaluated women with PCOS divided into four Rotterdam phenotypes (A, B, C and D) and in 108 matched ovulatory, nonhyperandrogenic women.

Measurements: BMI, fasting glucose, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol and an oral glucose tolerance test.

Results: The overall prevalence of obesity was 31%, metabolic syndrome 6.6%, diabetes 2.1%, altered glucose metabolism 13.1%, and abnormal lipid profile 60%. Phenotype B had the highest prevalence of obesity, metabolic syndrome, altered glucose metabolism and lipid abnormalities compared to other PCOS phenotypes and controls. Phenotype A was more obese and more women had metabolic syndrome compared to phenotypes C and D but phenotype C had a similar prevalence of altered glucose metabolism and lipid abnormalities compared to phenotype A which had a higher BMI. These metabolic abnormalities in A and C were higher compared to phenotype D and controls. Multivariate analysis showed that BMI predicts only abnormalities in fasting glucose and triglycerides, while there was no association with androgens.

Conclusions: In Mediterranean women with PCOS from Sicily with a lower prevalence of obesity, the prevalence of diabetes, altered glucose metabolism and metabolic syndrome were much lower than reported in US studies. Phenotype B was the most metabolically affected phenotype, followed by phenotype A. Phenotype C had an intermediate disorder but with a high prevalence of altered glucose metabolism and lipid alterations. Only the normoandrogenic phenotype D had no metabolic abnormalities.