PurposeLiterature emerging from Western countries has reported increased levels of serum oxidative stress markers among polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) women. In the Arab region, there is limited research about the association between oxidative stress and PCOS. This study aimed to compare sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, sex hormones, and oxidative stress indices between PCOS women and non-PCOS women and to investigate the correlation between oxidative stress biomarkers and sex hormones.MethodsThis hospital-based case-control study was conducted among reproductive-aged women. The study included 51 women diagnosed with PCOS (as per Rotterdam 2003 criteria) and 45 control women who were not diagnosed with PCOS. Serum samples were collected to measure the mean levels of the following sex hormones: total testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, estradiol and progesterone, as well as to measure biomarkers of oxidative stress including glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione (GSH), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC).ResultsPCOS women exhibited clinical characteristics including irregular menses, hirsutism, and acne compared to the control group (P≤0.05). Significant differences were observed in the waist-hip ratio of PCOS women compared to controls (P=0.004). GPx and GR activity levels appeared to be higher among PCOS women compared to controls; however, no statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups (P>0.05). PCOS women had lower GSH and TAC levels compared to controls with a statistically significant difference observed for GSH levels (P=0.006). Correlation analysis showed a significant negative correlation between estradiol and TAC in the total sample (r=−0.284, P=0.005).ConclusionThis study provides supportive evidence that oxidative stress might play a role in the pathogenesis of PCOS and, hence, oxidative stress parameters could be suggested as diagnostic markers for early diagnosis of high-risk groups. Also, the study provides supportive evidence that obesity and sex hormones, particularly estradiol, in PCOS may contribute to enhanced oxidative stress.

PurposePrevious studies in Euro-American populations have shown that women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) have increased levels of “psychological burden”. While PCOS has been reported in Arab countries such as Oman, there is a dearth of studies of the occurrence of psychological burden among PCOS women in the Arab region. This study aimed to compare sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of PCOS women diagnosed with non-PCOS women and prevalence of severity of depression, anxiety and stress and to explore the association between PCOS and indices of psychological disturbances after adjusting for potential confounding factors.Patients and methodsThis hospital-based case–control study was conducted among women aged 16–49 years. The study included 52 women diagnosed with PCOS (as per Rotterdam 2003 criteria) and 60 control who were PCOS-free. The presence of psychological burden – depression, anxiety and stress – was quantified using Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21).ResultsThe crude odds ratios (ORs) generated by logistic regression models indicated an increased risk of depression, anxiety and stress among women with PCOS compared to controls. The adjusted OR also indicated an increased risk of depression (OR =1.10; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.50, 2.43), anxiety (OR =1.09; 95% CI 0.47, 2.52) and stress (OR =1.45; 95% CI 0.68, 3.12), However, no statistical differences were observed along the three psychological distresses (p>0.05) between the two study groups.ConclusionThe study indicates that the presence of PCOS is associated with an increased risk of psychological burden. If this study will withstand further scrutiny, meeting psychological needs of such population would need to be contemplated.

BackgroundPrevious studies in Euro‐American populations have shown that women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) have increased levels of serum oxidative stress markers. In the Arab region, there is noticeable lack of research of the association between oxidative stress and PCOS.ObjectiveThis study aims to compare socio‐demographic, clinical characteristics and oxidative stress indices between women diagnosed with PCOS and non‐PCOS women.MethodsThis hospital based case‐control study was conducted among women aged 16–49 years. The study included 51 women diagnosed with PCOS (as per Rotterdam 2003 criteria) and 45 control women who were known not to have PCOS. Serum blood samples were collected to measure biomarkers of oxidative stress including glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) using commercially available kits.ResultsReduced GSH levels (P= 0.006) were significantly lower among PCOS women compared to non PCOS women. GR and GPx activity levels showed higher trends in women with PCOS compared to non PCOS women and the difference was significant for the GPx activity (P= 0.04). PCOS women also showed lower TAC levels (P= 0.08) than the control group with no significant difference between the two groups.ConclusionThe study provides a supportive evidence for the association between oxidative stress and PCOS among Omani women. Oxidative stress might play a role in pathogenesis of PCOS, so these parameters may be suggested as diagnostic markers for early diagnosis and screening of high risk groups.Support or Funding InformationSultan Qaboos UniversityThis abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.