Insulin resistance indexes in women with premature ovarian insufficiency - a pilot study

Premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) is associated with hypoestrogenism and an increased risk of metabolic disorders. In many clinics, a variety of insulin resistance (IR) tests are used during routine clinical assessments. To date, there is no clear opinion about which of these tests should be applied in women with premature ovarian insufficiency (POI). Therefore, our preliminarily aim was to compare the most frequently used insulin resistance indexes in the clinical assessment of a group of POI women and a control group.

Our retrospective study included 98 women with karyotypically normal spontaneous POI aged 18-39 years and a control group of 78 healthy women. Each patient was given an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) to evaluate their insulin release and insulin resistance. In addition, each woman's insulin resistance (IR) was evaluated us-ing the homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), the quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI), the fasting glucose-to-insulin ratio (FGIR), and Matsuda and McAuley indexes. The two groups' glucose levels were compared at 0, 60 and 120 min of the OGTT.

At 0 and 60 min of the OGTT, the insulin levels of the POI women were significantly higher than those of the control group. The number of women in whom IR was detected using the various kits was comparable between the two groups.

In conclusion, only the OGTT evaluation revealed a significant difference in insulin concentrations between the two study groups. The indexes most commonly used to detect IR did not detect differences in IR between the POI women and the members of the healthy control group. QUICKI detected significantly more women with IR within both study groups than other tests did.