PCOS and Hyperprolactinemia: what do we know in 2019?

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Endocrinology
• Women's Health
• Endocrine Disorders

Background:

• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and hyperprolactinemia (HPRL) are leading causes of anovulation.
• A potential pathophysiological link between PCOS and HPRL has been debated since the 1950s, but remains unconfirmed.
• Older studies on PCOS and HPRL are now considered obsolete due to outdated diagnostic criteria and methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically evaluate the evidence for a pathophysiological link between PCOS and HPRL.
• To determine if hyperprolactinemia found in PCOS patients is truly related to the syndrome or due to other factors.
• To emphasize the need for standard etiological investigation when HPRL is detected in PCOS patients.

Main Methods:

• Review of historical and recent studies on PCOS and HPRL.
• Analysis of diagnostic criteria and investigation methods for HPRL, including macroprolactinemia.
• Evaluation of etiological investigations in recent studies of HPRL in PCOS patients.

Main Results:

• Previous studies linking PCOS and HPRL are outdated and used unreliable methods.
• Recent rigorous investigations indicate that HPRL in PCOS patients is often transient, due to macroprolactinemia, or other etiologies.
• No recent studies have found a direct etiological link between HPRL and PCOS.

Conclusions:

• The association between PCOS and HPRL appears to be more of a myth than a confirmed medical reality.
• The presence of HPRL in a patient with PCOS necessitates a standard etiological investigation.
• Future research should focus on differentiating true HPRL from other causes in women with PCOS.