The numbers around PCOS are striking: the condition affects roughly 1 in 10 women worldwide, and now those who have the hormonal disorder, or suspect that they do, have a new name to call it.
Published in The Lancet and backed by 14 years of collaboration between medical experts and patients, the condition is now officially known as polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, or PMOS. New York endocrinologist Rocio Salas Whalen, MD puts the milestone in perspective: "It only took 93 years to change [from] polycystic ovarian syndrome. The first time that PCOS was named was in 1935 and now they just agreed, after 14 years of trying to change the name, because PCOS is very misleading."
That misleading name has had real consequences. Many women were missed entirely because they didn't present with cysts or follicles on their ovaries, even though you can have the syndrome without them. The renaming reflects a more accurate understanding of what's actually happening in the body.
As Dr. Salas Whalen explains, "Now it's called polyendocrine because it affects different hormones, especially insulin and testosterone, and metabolic because it's truly a metabolic disease." The condition can affect weight, metabolism, mental health, skin and the reproductive system, and is closely linked to an increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, prediabetes and insulin resistance.
Symptoms can vary widely, which has historically made PMOS tricky to diagnose, and the old name didn't help. Experts hope the updated terminology will lead to more accurate diagnoses and better, more individualized care.
Treatment will still consist of lifestyle modifications like changes in diet, increased movement and prioritizing sleep, but can also include medications like metformin, GLP-1s, androgen-blocking drugs or birth control.
And for those thinking about fertility, experts say PMOS remains the most common cause of female infertility, though most people with the condition can carry a pregnancy successfully. "Having PMOS increases your risk of Type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, infertility, insulin resistance and it's still the ovary that plays a role,” notes Dr. Salas Whalen. “We make testosterone in the ovary, so the ovary is still very much part of this."
The hope is that the new name will help match the condition's complexity and fewer women go misdiagnosed or undertreated.
