PCOS Messages for October, 2000: Re: Looking for answers!...list of tests

Re: Looking for answers!...list of tests

From: paula (anonymous@obgyn.net)
Tue, 31 Oct 2000 21:57:04 -0600 (CST)

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In reply to: Tonya: "Looking for answers!"

ok, a diagnosis is made by performing several tests including a physical exam, hormone levels, and ultrasound.

lets start with hormone levels. you should have an extensive check of the endocrine system including: Luteinizing hormone (LH), Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), total and free testosterone, Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAs), prolactin, Androstenedione, Progesterone. additionally women with irrgeular periods and very high androgen levels should be screened for adult-onset adrenal hyperplasia which can sometimes, but rarely mask as PCOS. to test for this you should have a hormone 17-hydroxyprogesterone.

you should also have an IGTT. this is a 2-5 hour test that measures insulin and glucose spikes and dips. it involves several blood draws, and sometimes the same thing can be accomplished by a fasting insulin and a fasting glucose, but i do not recommend that route because often the easier tests come back as a false normal, and doctors sometimes do not want to perform the IGTT. so go for the more accurate one first.

finally, your doctor should run a lipid panel. often women with PCOS have elevated cholesterol and an unhealthy balance of LDL and HDL. so the doc should run: cholesterol, HDL and LDL.

your doc should perform an ultrasound of the ovaries and uterus. to be sure they are healthy. the ovaries do not have to be cystic for a diagnosis. uterine lining should be checked for unusual thickness or any cysts there. Since it has been so long since your last period, in your particular case, i tihhnk you should also have a biopsy of the uterine lining to rule out any abnormalities. if you are overweight, it is much more accurate to have a vaginal ultrasound. this gives a better view of the uterus and ovaries...

hope this helps love, paula

-- feel free to email me anytime at paulam74@hotmail.com

If you can't be a good example, then you'll have to be a horrible warning - Catherine Aird

I refuse to think of them as chin hairs. I think of them as stray eyebrows -Janette Barber

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In reply to: Tonya: "Looking for answers!"

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