Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Awareness among Females in the UAE: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) is a common hormonal disorder affecting females of reproductive age. Clinical guidelines recommend following diagnostic criteria of PCOS based on an appropriate assessment of patient’s clinical presentation and history. Sufficient awareness among population will prompt females to seek medical attention when necessary. This study aimed to assess knowledge and awareness about PCOS among females above the age of 18 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and to correlate the level of awareness with women's backgrounds, demographics, and education levels. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving interviews of 430 females using a 21-items questionnaire that assessed participants' awareness of PCOS as a term, its causes, symptoms, complications, treatment, and prevention. IBM® SPSS® Statistics version 23 was used for data analysis. Results: Among 349 participants familiar with the term PCOS, only 21.74% showed sufficient awareness of the syndrome (95% CI = 17.77-25.71%). Being knowledgeable of PCOS was significantly associated with having a previous diagnosis (p=0.002) and with studying or working in a medical field (p<0.001). In addition, females who knew someone diagnosed with PCOS were 5 times more likely to be more aware compared to those who didn’t (95% CI = 2.5-10.8; p<0.001). Age, education level, and nationality showed no correlation with the level of awareness. Conclusions: Overall, PCOS awareness level was insufficient in the study sample. Participants whose source of information was medical practitioners demonstrated more accurate knowledge. Accordingly, awareness of PCOS needs to be raised among females in the UAE, aiding early diagnosis and improving patient-oriented outcomes.

The Relationship between Acne and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: The Impact on Women’s Quality of Life

“…Begum and colleagues (2012) discovered in their research that 37.3% and 45.37% of acne patients had PCOS. Just 5% of study participants selected campaigns as their information source, and only 14% of them showed enough awareness, therefore the interventional strategies selected to educate the general public must be well-established (Zaitoun et al, 2023). About 5% to 7% of women who are fertile have PCOS, a complicated illness.…”

“…Interestingly, the majority of research revealed that women were less aware of the consequences of PCOS. This raises concerns since patients may seek early medical attention mostly out of fear of irreversible problems (Zaitoun et al, 2023).…”

“…Clinical recommendations advise utilizing the PCOS diagnosis criteria after a suitable evaluation of the patient's clinical presentation. When women are well informed, they will seek medical care when it is needed (Zaitoun et al, 2023). Although psychological discomfort is frequently linked to PCOS, its most common clinical features include hirsutism, acne, and elevated androgen hormone levels (Mehrabadi et al, 2020).…”

Awareness of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome among Jordanian Females

“…This study adopted a cross-sectional design 14 The collected data were processed and analyzed using the standard appropriate statistical methods.…”