10.1. POLYCYSTIC OVARY SYNDROME
ICD-10 Code
Е28.2 Polycystic ovarian syndrome, PCOS.
General Information
"What does it mean having a polycystic ovary? Unfortunately, for many women it means a life consisting of endless problems. In high school I suddenly started having unwanted hair on my face which was quite humiliating especially since all my normal friends had nothing of the kind... my arms and legs had an enormous amount of hair... I used up tons of depilation creams. No matter how much time I spent at a beautician's, my skin would never become clear and smooth.
I understood quite early that I had to eat little by all means: as soon as I overindulged, it transformed into excess weight and would not give in to my all-out efforts to slim down.
My periods were a nightmare and when they started I understood why they were referred to as a curse.
When I was older, the polycystic ovary syndrome was the reason why I could not get pregnant for a long time, and later I could not carry to term those two pregnancies that I had spontaneously. The desire to have children and inability to fulfill it was the hardest moment in my life. In a woman with a disease that makes her less feminine, less attractive and alluring this suppresses her self-esteem to the extent of feeling a complete failure.
In later life the polycystic ovary syndrome leads to significant health problems. It is not just a cosmetic issue and infertility. Women with these conditions are much more prone to diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease; they are at a higher risk of endometrial cancer."
Kelli L. McDermott, PCOS Awareness Association (www.pcosaa.org)
In 1935 I. Stein and M. Leventhal described a combination of amenorrhea and bilateral multiple ovarian cysts. Nowadays the condition is referred to as polycystic ovary syndrome or Stein-Leventhal syndrome.