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. 2020 Jul 15;18(1):220.
doi: 10.1186/s12916-020-01697-5.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and COVID-19: an overlooked female patient population at potentially higher risk during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ioannis Kyrou  1   2   3 , Emmanouil Karteris  4 , Tim Robbins  1   5 , Kamaljit Chatha  6 , Fotios Drenos  4   7 , Harpal S Randeva  8   9   10
Affiliations

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and COVID-19: an overlooked female patient population at potentially higher risk during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ioannis Kyrou et al. BMC Med. .

Abstract

Background: In women of reproductive age, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) constitutes the most frequent endocrine disorder. Women with PCOS are considered to typically belong to an age and sex group which is at lower risk for severe COVID-19.

Main body: Emerging data link the risk of severe COVID-19 with certain factors such as hyper-inflammation, ethnicity predisposition, low vitamin D levels, and hyperandrogenism, all of which have known direct associations with PCOS. Moreover, in this common female patient population, there is markedly high prevalence of multiple cardio-metabolic conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, and hypertension, which may significantly increase the risk for adverse COVID-19-related outcomes. This strong overlap of risk factors for both worse PCOS cardio-metabolic manifestations and severe COVID-19 should be highlighted for the clinical practice, particularly since women with PCOS often receive fragmented care from multiple healthcare services. Comprehensively informing women with PCOS regarding the potential risks from COVID-19 and how this may affect their management is also essential.

Conclusion: Despite the immense challenges posed by the COVID-19 outbreak to the healthcare systems in affected countries, attention should be directed to maintain a high standard of care for complex patients such as many women with PCOS and provide relevant practical recommendations for optimal management in the setting of this fast moving pandemic.

Keywords: Androgens; COVID-19; Diabetes; Hypertension; Obesity; PCOS; Polycystic ovary syndrome; SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2; Vitamin D.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Overlap between common factors which promote an unfavorable cardio-metabolic profile in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and factors which, based on the existing data, appear to increase the risk for severe COVID-19 (*further research is required to clarify the potential links between adverse COVID-19-related outcomes and hyper-cytokinemia, hyperandrogenemia, and vitamin D deficiency)
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