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- Women with polycystic ovary syndrome tend to have an increased cardiometabolic risk
- A new study investigated whether this would also increase their risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection
- The study found that women with PCOS have a 51% greater risk of contracting Covid-19 than women without PCOS
An important aspect of fighting Covid-19 involves identifying those who are most vulnerable to infection so that their protection can be prioritised.
While the elderly and individuals with underlying conditions are known to be at heightened risk of Covid-19, a new study published in the European Journal of Endocrinology revealed that women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) also count as high-risk individuals.
What is PCOS?
Polycystic ovarian syndrome is a hormonal condition in which a woman's sex hormones are unbalanced. While it doesn't affect everyone the same way, the condition is commonly characterised by symptoms like weight gain, irregular periods, excessive hair growth and difficulty falling pregnant.
PCOS is also associated with a higher risk of cardiometabolic disease (including type 2 diabetes, hypertension and fatty liver disease), which has been flagged as a risk factor for Covid-19. These associations led a team of researchers to further investigate whether this increased metabolic risk in people suffering from PCOS directly translates to an increased risk of Covid-19.
PCOS and Covid-19 risk
The team carried out a population-based closed cohort study during the first wave of the pandemic in the UK.
The study included more than 21 000 women with PCOS, with over 71 000 participants as a control group, matched for sex, age and general practice location.
Results of the study show that women with PCOS have a 51% greater risk of contracting Covid-19, compared to women of the same age and background who do not suffer from the condition. It was also revealed that the incidence of women with PCOS infected with Covid-19 was also nearly double that of women without PCOS.
Policies needed to protect those with PCOS
“Given the high prevalence of PCOS, these findings need to be considered when designing public health policy and advice as our understanding of Covid-19 evolves,” said first author Anuradha Subramanian.
Joint senior author Dr Krish Nirantharakumar suggested that Covid-19 protective policies implemented for women with PCOS should also take their mental health into consideration.
“The risk of mental health problems including low self-esteem, anxiety and depression is significantly higher in women with PCOS, and advice on strict adherence to physical distancing needs to be tempered by the associated risk of exacerbating these underlying problems,” Dr Nirantharakumar said.
Joint senior author Professor Wiebke Arlt expressed that more research is needed to help mitigate the risks associated with PCOS.
“Women with PCOS have recently been highlighted as an overlooked and potentially high-risk population for contracting Covid-19,” Professor Arlt stated.
“However, our study does not provide information on the risk of a severe course of the Covid-19 infection or on the risk of Covid-19 related long-term complications of Covid-19, and further research is required.”
