Polycystic Ovarian Disease (PCOD), also known as Polycystic Ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a very common condition affecting 5% to 10% of women in the age group 12–45 years. It is a problem in which a woman’s hormones are out of balance and can cause problems with menstrual periods and make it difficult for her to conceive. The principal features include no ovulation, irregular periods, acne and hirsutism. If not treated it can cause insulin resistant diabetes, obesity and high cholesterol leading to heart disease.
Polycystic ovary syndrome is related to an imbalance in the female sex hormones in which they start making slightly more androgens which causes patients to stop ovulating, get pimples and grow extra facial and body hair. In polycystic ovary syndrome, the eggs in these follicles do not mature and are not released from the ovaries. Instead, they can form very small cysts in the ovary, hence the name polycystic ovaries. PCOS seems to run in families, so the chance of having it is higher if other women in the family have PCOS, irregular periods, or Diabetes.