Mental Health of Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) and Some of Its Socio-Demographic Determinants

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Keywords: PCOS, Mental Health, Socio-Demographic Determinants

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is among the common endocrine disorders that not only affect physical aspects of women's health but also can create manifestations such as anxiety and depression. In this study, we examined the mental health and some of its socio-demographic determinants among Iranian women suffering from PCOS.

Materials and Methods: It was a descriptive crosssectional study. The sample consisted of 184 women suffering from PCOS who referred to selected infertility centers of Tehran in 2011. Mental health status of the subjects was evaluated by the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) and analyzed using chi-squared test and Pearson correlation coefficient using SPSS-PC (v. 14).

Results: The mean (SD) age of the women was 27.75 (5.37) years. Considering a cut-offpoint of 24 for the GHQ-28 questionnaire, 91.3% of the subjects had an abnormal score. The abnormal scores were in the subscales of social withdrawal (91.3%), somatic symptom (89.1), anxiety (75%), and depression (33.7%). There were a significant relationship between age and anxiety subscale, occupation and depression subscale, and body mass index and depression subscale(p<0.05).

Conclusion: This study revealed that women with PCOS are at risk of psychological disorders, especially in social withdrawal domain. Thus referring these women to appropriate consultation centers for screening psychological disorders is strongly recommended.