PCOS- how diagnosed?

[Itsallkickingoff]

I have 2dc but have been pregnant 3 times and got pregnant each time v easily(first cycle). Regular if long cycles 31-35 days. At each scan the first thing sonographer asked was if pregnancy was the result of fertility treatment as my ovaries were very polycystic. This did make me feel slightly paranoid and I went to my doctor, this was a waste of time as went to hospital had a scan, went back to doctor he said, yes you do have polycystic ovaries bye bye! Is this how PCOS is diagnosed or did more tests need to be done. Am now ttc number 4, but it is now 3 years since conceiving last, as I was extremely traumatised by losing baby at late stage. Its not happening so quickly this time, is this more likely to be because I'm older now over 35years or could it have something to do with PCOS?

I have been diagnosed with PCOS since Summer, and i had numerous blood tests and a couple of scans before they actually confirmed thats what i have. I'm lucky in a sense as only have very little cysts on ovaries but cannot concieve.

My levels of testosterone are too high so not ovulating regularly. It could be a combo oh pcos and age. I keep being told im on the right side of thirty but need to lose weight (so frustrating)

So sorry to hear about losing baby, can never imagine how hard that would be. :(

In terms of diagnosis of PCOS, my consultant explained that you may have polycystic ovaries, but not have the syndrome. For the syndrome, you must have 2 out of the following 3: 1) polycystic ovaries. 2) infrequent and irregular periods. 3) evidence of high testosterone levels e.g increased hair growth.

So I'd say more tests needed to be done for you and then if you do have PCOS a plan of action formed by a fertility specialist.

I had a scan and blood tests. Have got the syndrome and they could tell me this by just that. You should have had some more support though not just a bye bye!!

A treatment for conceiving if you have PCOS is to go on the pill for a certain length of time. The cysts can become reabsorbed. They are like spots that can heal if your ovaries are given a break from the hormonal cycles. I stayed on the pill until I wanted to conceive and when I came off the pill I had a regular period cycle for the first time. Rather than my periods being every 60 to 90 days they became every 30 days. I was pregnant in 8 months with out any ov monitoring.

Hi Itsallkickingoff, I am so sorry for your loss, I cant imagine how difficult that must have been.

I dont think one scan result is enough to say you have PCOS. I was (wrongly) diagnosed like this, on the basis of one scan and incorrectly taken blood tests, it is definately possible to have cysts and not have the syndrome. Sometimes the cysts go away all by themselves and need no treatment. Sometimes cysts are a sign that the normal hormonal cycle is not working correctly and there can be many other reasons for this like excess thyroid or excess prolactin, for example. (These are treatable problems and nothing to do with PCOS)

In a normal cycle lots of follicles grow on the ovaries, one of these follicle or "lumps" becomes dominant and produces an egg and then the rest shrink away. If things dont go to plan no follicle becomes dominant, no egg is released and on a scan these lumps show up and are now called "cysts" instead of "follicles". If you see these repeatedly on scans or if you have other symptoms, you should get a blood test to find out what the cause is.

A proper way to diagnose PCOS would be to take your history and see if you have things like irregular periods, infertility problems, mc, excess weight, acne, excess hair, history of diabetes in the family etc and also take blood tests on day 2 of your cycle (a challenge in itself if your periods are irregular!) They will check to see if the ratio of LH:FSH is 3:1 or greater. (these ratio should be about 1:1) sometimes this test needs to be done more than once. At the same time they can also check other hormones to test for things other than PCOS. As I understand it PCOS affects different women in different ways, some have few and some many symptoms.

PCOS is treatable, with contraceptive pills or if you are TTC with metaformin, but many women with PCOS have successful pregnancies with no treatment at all.

hope you get some answers soon xxx