Polycystic ovarian syndrome is a common disorder in which several small cysts form in the ovaries due to which the follicles are not able to produce eggs in a regular fashion. The eggs produced by the follicles of a polycystic ovary are very small and immature because of which they are unable to get fertilized.

The Incidence of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
This is a very common problem in women and one in every ten women is diagnosed with this disorder.


Almost 25% of women once in their lifetime are diagnosed with ovarian cysts. However, most of these women have benign cysts which do not cause the disruption of their normal life.

Causes of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
This syndrome has various causes but the main one is excessive production of male hormones in a woman's body.


Another common cause of the development of polycystic ovarian syndrome is the excessive production or accumulation of insulin. This is a hereditary condition which can be passed on from one generation to the next and many women inherit this from their mothers.

Symptoms of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome:

• Absence of periods or irregularity in the normal cycle,

• Excessive hair on the face,

• Sudden weight gain,

• Appearance of acne or pustules on the face and other parts of the body,

• Pain in the pelvis,

• Inability to conceive,

• Type 2 diabetes

• Increase in blood pressure.
  
  
  

However, it is not necessary for all the symptoms to be present for a woman to be diagnosed with this problem.

Treatment
Ordinarily, the most severe symptom of this condition is infertility and the treatment is centred on alleviating this particular symptom. Normally, fertility drugs are administered to the woman suffering from polycystic ovarian syndrome. These drugs suppress male hormones. However, in some cases, surgery may have to be performed to remove these cysts.

Recently, doctors have also discovered acupuncture as an alternative therapy to treat polycystic ovarian syndrome. The research was conducted on twenty women who were divided into three groups. One group was treated with acupuncture, one group was left untreated, and the third group was made to perform physical exercise.
In a period of sixteen weeks, the group that did physical exercises and the one that was treated with acupuncture both showed lowered stress levels. However, those who received acupuncture showed much better results than all the other groups. The women experienced more regular periods and the secretion of male hormones showed a decrease.

Reference:

1.  Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol (June 3, 2009).