Frequency of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome in Women with Postadolescent Acne

January 2014 in “ Journal of the Egyptian Women's Dermatologic Society (Print) ”

N.W. Mikhael, N.E. Sorour, Jehan H Sabry

polycystic ovarian syndrome postadolescent acne testosterone follicle-stimulating hormone luteinizing hormone LH/FSH ratio hormonal profiles ultrasonography menstrual irregularities hirsutism PCOS acne FSH LH

TLDR Women with acne after adolescence are more likely to have PCOS and should be checked for it.

In 2013, a case-control study with 40 female patients with postadolescent acne vulgaris and 20 acne-free controls found that 37.5% of the acne patients had polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), a significantly higher frequency than the 5% observed in the control group. While serum levels of total testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH) did not differ significantly between the groups, the LH/FSH ratio did, especially when comparing acne patients with PCOS to those without. The researchers concluded that women with postadolescent acne should be screened for PCOS, suggesting hormonal profiles and ultrasonography as part of the evaluation, regardless of the presence of menstrual irregularities or hirsutism.

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