POLYCYSTIC OVARY SYNDROME (PCOS, PCOD) : Best Homeopathy Treatment Specialist Doctor Treatment Clinic at Chennai, Tamilnadu, India

POLYCYSTIC OVARY SYNDROME (PCOS, PCOD)

What is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)?

PCOS is a health problem that can affect a woman’s menstrual cycle, fertility, hormones, insulin production, heart, blood vessels, and appearance. Women with PCOS have these characteristics:

• high levels of male hormones, also called androgens
• an irregular or no menstrual cycle
• May or may not have many small cysts in their ovaries. Cysts are fluid-filled sacs.

PCOS is the most common hormonal reproductive problem in women of childbearing age.

Causes of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)

• No one knows the exact cause of PCOS.
• Women with PCOS frequently have a mother or sister with PCOS. But there is not yet enough evidence to say there is a genetic link to this disorder.
• Many women with PCOS have a weight problem. So researchers are looking at the relationship between PCOS and the body’s ability to make insulin.
• Insulin is a hormone that regulates the change of sugar, starches, and other food into energy for the body’s use or for storage. Since some women with PCOS make too much insulin, it’s possible that the ovaries react by making too many male hormones, called androgens. This can lead to acne, excessive hair growth, weight gain, and ovulation problems.

Why do women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) have trouble with their menstrual cycle?

The ovaries are two small organs, one on each side of a woman's uterus. A woman's ovaries have follicles, which are tiny sacs filled with liquid that hold the eggs. These sacs are also called cysts. Each month about 20 eggs start to mature, but usually only one becomes dominant. As the one egg grows, the follicle accumulates fluid in it. When that egg matures, the follicle breaks open to release the egg so it can travel through the fallopian tube for fertilization. When the single egg leaves the follicle, ovulation takes place.

In women with PCOS, the ovary doesn't make all of the hormones it needs for any of the eggs to fully mature. They may start to grow and accumulate fluid. But no one egg becomes large enough. Instead, some may remain as cysts. Since no egg matures or is released, ovulation does not occur and the hormone progesterone is not made. Without progesterone, a woman’s menstrual cycle is irregular or absent. Also, the cysts produce male hormones, which continue to prevent ovulation.

Symptoms of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)

These are some of the symptoms of PCOS:

• infrequent menstrual periods, no menstrual periods, and/or irregular bleeding
• infertility or inability to get pregnant because of not ovulating
• increased growth of hair on the face, chest, stomach, back, thumbs, or toes
• acne, oily skin, or dandruff
• pelvic pain
• weight gain or obesity, usually carrying extra weight around the waist
• type 2 diabetes
• high cholesterol
• high blood pressure
• male-pattern baldness or thinning hair
• patches of thickened and dark brown or black skin on the neck, arms, breasts, or thighs
• skin tags, or tiny excess flaps of skin in the armpits or neck area
• sleep apnoea? excessive snoring and breathing stops at times while asleep

Diagnosis of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)

There is no single test to diagnose PCOS.

¬  Ultrasound, Hormone tests,

¬  Measuring blood glucose, or sugar levels

¬  Increased hair growth, so try to allow the natural hair growth for a few days before the visit.

¬  Irregular period.

How is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) treated in Alloapthy method?

Treatments are based on the symptoms each patient is having and whether she wants to conceive or needs contraception. Below are descriptions of treatments used for PCOS.

Birth control pills.

¬  For women who don’t want to become pregnant, birth control pills can regulate menstrual cycles, reduce male hormone levels, and help to clear acne. However, the birth control pill does not cure PCOS. The menstrual cycle will become abnormal again if the pill is stopped. Women may also think about taking a pill that only has progesterone, like Provera, to regulate the menstrual cycle and prevent endometrial problems. But progesterone alone does not help reduce acne and hair growth.

Diabetes Medications.

¬  The medicine, Metformin, also called Glucophage, which is used to treat type 2 diabetes, also helps with PCOS symptoms. Metformin affects the way insulin regulates glucose and decreases the testosterone production. Abnormal hair growth will slow down and ovulation may return after a few months of use. These medications will not cause a person to become diabetic.

Fertility Medications.

¬  The main fertility problem for women with PCOS is the lack of ovulation. Even so, her husband’s sperm count should be checked and her tubes checked to make sure they are open before fertility medications are used. Clomiphene (clomid) medication and gonadotropin injections can be used to stimulate the ovary to ovulate. PCOS patients are at increased risk for multiple births when using these medications. In vitro Fertilization (IVF) is sometimes recommended to control the chance of having triplets or more. Metformin can be taken with fertility medications and helps to make PCOS women ovulate on lower doses of medication.

Medicine for increased hair growth or extra male hormones.

¬  If a woman is not trying to get pregnant there are some other medicines that may reduce hair growth. Spironolactone is a blood pressure medicine that has been shown to decrease the male hormone’s effect on hair. Propecia, a medicine taken by men for hair loss, is another medication that blocks this effect. Both of these medicines can affect the development of a male foetus and should not be taken if pregnancy is possible. Other non-medical treatments such as electrolysis or laser hair removal are effective at getting rid of hair. A woman with PCOS can also take hormonal treatment to keep new hair from growing.

Surgery.

¬  Although it is not recommended as the first course of treatment, surgery called ovarian drilling is available to induce ovulation. The doctor makes a very small incision above or below the navel, and inserts a small instrument that acts like a telescope into the abdomen. This is called laparoscopy. The doctor then punctures the ovary with a small needle carrying an electric current to destroy a small portion of the ovary. This procedure carries a risk of developing scar tissue on the ovary. This surgery can lower male hormone levels and help with ovulation. But these effects may only last a few months. This treatment doesn't help with increased hair growth and loss of scalp hair.

A healthy weight.

¬  Maintaining a healthy weight is another way women can help manage PCOS. Since obesity is common with PCOS, a healthy diet and physical activity help maintain a healthy weight, which will help the body lower glucose levels, use insulin more efficiently, and may help restore a normal period. Even loss of 10% of her body weight can help make a woman's cycle more regular.

How does Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) affect a woman while pregnant?

There appears to be a higher rate of miscarriage, gestational diabetes, pregnancy-induced high blood pressure, and premature delivery in women with PCOS. Researchers are studying how the medicine, metformin, prevents or reduces the chances of having these problems while pregnant, in addition to looking at how the drug lowers male hormone levels and limits weight gain in women who are obese when they get pregnant.

Note: No one yet knows if metformin is safe for pregnant women. Because the drug crosses the placenta, doctors are concerned that the baby could be affected by the drug. Research is ongoing.

Does Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) put women at risk for other conditions?

Women with PCOS can be at an increased risk for developing several other conditions. Irregular menstrual periods and the absence of ovulation cause women to produce the hormone estrogen, but not the hormone progesterone. Without progesterone, which causes the endometrium to shed each month as a menstrual period, the endometrium becomes thick, which can cause heavy bleeding or irregular bleeding. Eventually, this can lead to endometrial hyperplasia or cancer. Women with PCOS are also at higher risk for diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and heart disease. Getting the symptoms under control at an earlier age may help to reduce this risk.

Does Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) change at menopause?

Researchers are looking at how male hormone levels change as women with PCOS grow older. They think that as women reach menopause, ovarian function changes and the menstrual cycle may become more normal. But even with falling male hormone levels, excessive hair growth continues, and male pattern baldness or thinning hair gets worse after menopause.

Homeopathy Treatment for PCOD

Homeopathy methods of treatment based on symptoms similarity of the patients. According the symptoms doctor will select the medicines. Homeopathy medicines act well in PCOD/PCOS without side effects

What is PCOD ( polycystic ovarian disease) ?

Patients suffering from polycystic ovarian disease ( PCOD ) have multiple small cysts in their ovaries ( the word poly means many). These cysts occur when the regular changes of a normal menstrual cycle are disrupted. The ovary is enlarged; and produces excessive amounts of androgen and estrogenic hormones. This excess, along with the absence of ovulation, may cause infertility. Other names for PCOD are polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) or the Stein-Leventhal syndrome.

How is PCOD diagnosed ?

Diagnosis
PCOD can be easy to diagnose in some patients. The typical medical history is that of irregular menstrual cycles, which are unpredictable and can be very heavy ; and the need to take hormonal tablets (progestins) to induce a period. Patients suffering from PCOD are often obese and may have hirsutism , (excessive facial and body hair) as a result of the high androgen levels. However, remember that not all patients with PCOD will have all or any of these symptoms.

This diagnosis can be confirmed by vaginal ultrasound, which shows that both the ovaries are enlarged; the bright central stroma is increased ; and there are multiple small cysts in the ovaries. These cysts are usually arranged in the form of a necklace along the periphery of the ovary. ( It is important that your doctor be able to differentiate multicystic ovaries from polycystic ovaries. )

Blood tests are also very useful for making the diagnosis. Typically, blood levels of hormones reveal  a high LH ( luteinising hormone) level; and a normal FSH ( follicle stimulating hormone) level ( this is called a reversal of the LH : FSH ratio, which is normally 1:1); and elevated levels of androgens ( a high dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate  ( DHEA-S) level) ;

What is the cause of PCOD ?

We don't really understand what causes PCOD, though we do know that it has a significant hereditary component, and is often transmitted from mother to daughter . We also know that the characteristic polycystic ovary emerges when a state of anovulation persists for a length of time. Patients with PCO have persistently elevated levels of androgens and estrogens, which set up a vicious cycle. Obesity can aggravate PCOD because fatty tissues are hormonally active and they produce estrogen which disrupts ovulation . Overactive adrenal glands can also produce excess androgens, and these may also contribute to PCOD. These women also have insulin resistance ( high levels of insulin in their blood, because their cells do not respond normally to insulin).

What is occult PCOD ?

While some women with PCOD will have all the classic symptoms and signs, many have what we call "occult PCOD". This means that they may be thin, have regular periods , no hirsutism and normal looking ovaries on ultrasound, but still have PCOD. This problem is detected only when these patients are superovulated, at which time they over-respond by producing a large number of follicles.

Interestingly, many of these patients present with recurrent pregnancy loss ( recurrent miscarriages) , and often their doctor does not make the correct diagnosis for them.

How is PCOD treated ?

Treatment
Treatment of PCOD for the infertile patient will usually focus on inducing ovulation to help them conceive.

Weight loss: For many patients with PCOD, weight loss is an effective treatment - but of course, this is easier said than done! Look for a permanent weight loss plan - and referral to a dietitian or a weight control clinic may be helpful. Crash diets are usually not effective.

Increasing physical activity is an important step in losing weight. Aerobic activities such as walking, jogging or swimming are advised. Try to find a partner to do this with, so that you can help each other to keep going.

How can ovulation be induced in patients with PCOD ?

Ovulation Induction: The drug of first choice for women with PCOD today is metformin ( this medicine is also used for treating patients with diabetes. ) Doctors have now learned that many patients with PCOD also have insulin resistance – a condition similar to that found in diabetics, in that they have raised levels of insulin in their blood ( hyperinsulinemia) , and their response to insulin is blunted. This is why some patients with PCOD who do not respond to clomiphene are treated with antidiabetic drugs, such as metformin and troglitazone. Studies have shown that these drugs improve their fertility by reversing their endocrine abnormality and improving their ovulatory response.

In the past, the drug of first choice used to be clomiphene; this may be combined with low-doses of dexamethasone, a steroid which suppresses androgen production from the adrenal glands. Just taking clomiphene is not enough , and you need to be monitored ( usually with ultrasound scans) to determine if the clomiphene is helping you to ovulate or not. The doctor may have to progressively increase the dose till he finds the right dose for you. If clomiphene does not work, a newer anti-estrogen called letrozole ( which is also used for treating women with breast cancer) can be used. Clomiphene resistant PCO women may need ovulation induction with HMG ( gonadotropins). Some doctors prefer to use pure FSH for inducing ovulation in PCOD patients because they have abnormally high levels of LH.

Ovulation induction can often be difficult in patients with PCOD , since there is the risk that the patient may over-respond to the drugs, and produce too many follicles, which is why the risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome ( OHSS) and multiple pregnancy is often increased in patients with PCOD. The doctor has to find just the right dose of HMG ( called the threshold value ) in order to induce maturation and release of a single , or only a few follicles , and this can sometimes be very tricky.

Difficult patients may also need a combination of a GnRH analog (to stop the abnormal release of FSH and LH from the pituitary) and HMG to induce ovulation successfully.

How is surgery used to treat patients with PCOD ?

Surgery: A recent treatment option uses laparoscopy to treat patients with PCOD. During operative laparoscopy, a laser or cautery is used to drill multiple holes through the thickened ovarian capsule. This procedure is called laparoscopic ovarian cauterisation or ovarian drilling or LEOS ( laparoscopic electrocauterisation of ovarian stroma) . This should be reserved for women with PCOD who have large ovaries with increased stroma on ultrasound scanning. Destroying the abnormal ovarian tissue helps to restore normal ovarian function and helps to induce ovulation. For young patients with PCO ovaries on ultrasound, if clomiphene fails to achieve a pregnancy in 4 months time, we usually advise laparoscopic surgery as the next treatment option.  This is because LEOS helps us to correct the underlying problem; and about 80% of patients will have regular cycles after undergoing this surgery, of which 50% will conceive in a year’s time, without having to take further medication or treatment. Having regular cycles without having to take medicines each month can be very reassuring to these patients !

The skill of the surgeon plays a key role in determining the outcome of the surgery . It is important that the surgeon selectively destroy only the stroma, and NOT the cortex. The cortex of the ovary contains the eggs, and if this damaged, then ovarian function is jeopardised, so that the surgery may actually end up causing infertility ! An additional risk of this surgery is that it can induce adhesion formation, if not performed competently.

In the past, doctors used to perform ovarian surgery called wedge resection to help patients with PCOD to ovulate. The removal of the abnormal ovarian tissue in the wedge breaks the vicious cycle of PCOD, helping ovulation to occur . While wedge resection used to be a popular treatment option, the risk of inducing adhesions around the ovary as a result of this surgery has led to the operation being used as a last resort.

For patients who do not respond to the above measures, ovulation induction plus intrauterine insemination is the next step.

How is IVF used for treating patients with PCOD ?

If 3 cycles of IUI have failed, then IVF is the best treatment option for patients with PCOD. However, many IVF clinics have little experience in superovulating these women, and they often mess up their superovulation. Because these women grow so many eggs in response to the HMG injections used for superovulation, and because doctors are very worried about the risk of ovarian hyperstimulation, they often end up triggering egg collection with HCG when the eggs are immature. They consequently get lots of eggs, but since most of these are immature, fertilisation rates and pregnancy rates are very poor.

PCOD / PCOS Homeopathy Treatment

Symptomatic Homeopathy works well for PCOD / PCOS, So its good to consult a experienced Homeopathy physician without any hesitation.

Whom to contact for PCOD / PCOS Treatment

Dr.Senthil Kumar Treats many cases of PCOD / PCOS, In his medical professional experience with successful results. Many patients get relief after taking treatment from Dr.Senthil Kumar.  Dr.Senthil Kumar visits Chennai at Vivekanantha Homeopathy Clinic, Velachery, Chennai 42. To get appointment please call 9786901830, +91 94430 54168 or mail to consult.ur.dr@gmail.com,

For more details & Consultation Feel free to contact us.

Vivekanantha Clinic Consultation Champers at

Chennai:- 9786901830

Panruti:- 9443054168

Pondicherry:- 9865212055 (Camp)

Mail : consult.ur.dr@gmail.com, homoeokumar@gmail.com

For appointment please Call us or Mail Us

For appointment: SMS your Name -Age – Mobile Number - Problem in Single word - date and day - Place of appointment (Eg: Rajini – 30 - 99xxxxxxx0 – PCOD / PCOS, – 21st Oct, Sunday - Chennai ), You will receive Appointment details through SMS

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