You may have already heard: PCOS got renamed to PMOS, or Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovary Syndrome. Why should we even care?
Getting this diagnosis often feels incomplete
I've been thinking a lot about patients' experience in traditional clinics when they get this diagnosis, and how they may frequently feel dismissed, or that it's not fully explained. I actually had a conversation the other day with my sister, who has PMOS, to ask her about her experience. What she told me is that it really felt centered around her periods and using metformin when she was trying to get pregnant. But she didn't feel like they had explained what insulin resistance was, or that this could affect her whole body.
And frequently, patients are given birth control, metformin, or told to lose weight. The reality is that 85% of patients with PMOS have insulin resistance, even those who are not overweight.
PCOS was only part of the picture
PCOS really focused on the polycystic ovaries. That implied there were fertility and menstrual issues and ovarian cysts. But patients with PMOS can have insulin resistance, weight gain, fatty liver disease, sleep apnea, metabolic dysfunction, an increased risk for cardiovascular disease, and many other things that are frequently not addressed. And these can occur long before they ever see a fertility specialist or an endocrinologist.
Why wait until diabetes?
Why are we waiting until you develop diabetes to address it? We should be addressing it before then. At my clinic, we do a thorough evaluation of your metabolic health, and this includes looking at insulin resistance and any risk factors you have for metabolic conditions. I frequently run tests that may not be done at standard clinics.
If you want a deeper look at your metabolic health with a physician who will take the time to listen, come see me at Bloom. You can schedule a free meet and greet below, or give me a call, and we'll see how we can help.