Abstract
Background
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with increased risk of many mental health conditions, including mood and anxiety disorders. Whether PCOS is more common in mental health conditions than in the general population is less clear. A systematic review investigating this question may provide clarity regarding whether increased prevalence of PCOS is seen in particular mental health disorders, and thus, whether screening female mental health patients for PCOS is warranted.
Aims
To systematically synthesise and review research examining rates of PCOS in mental health disorders.
Methods
Peer-reviewed articles assessing the prevalence of PCOS within a sample of reproductive-aged females with a diagnosis of Axis I or II mental health disorder were included. Key studies were identified through a comprehensive search of PubMed and Web of Science.
Results
Eleven studies met inclusion criteria, assessing rate of diagnosed PCOS in samples with bipolar disorder (
n
= 7), autism spectrum disorders (ASD;
n
= 2), bulimia nervosa (
n
= 1), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD;
n
= 1). Overall, there was limited evidence of elevated rates of PCOS in bipolar disorder, compared with population estimates or healthy control group rates. In ASD, bulimia nervosa, and PTSD samples, significantly increased rates of PCOS were reported compared with healthy control samples, although studies were relatively small.
Conclusions
This review highlights complexities and methodological considerations in this area of research. There are a limited number of studies assessing PCOS in mental health samples, and thus, important areas of future research have been identified.
Trial registration
This systematic review was registered on PROSPERO (ID: CRD42020151420;
https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/
) on 28 April 2020.