Body composition of individuals with polycystic ovary syndrome

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the principle forms of hyperandrogenism that affects women of reproductive age. Few studies have evaluated the body composition of patients with PCOS being based mainly on an evaluation of the quantity and distribution of the fat mass. Objectives: to evaluate the body composition of patients affected by PCOS and to establish the hormonal factors that determine possible differences in body composition compared with healthy women. Methods: 110 Caucasian women affected by clinical hyperandrogenism and/or irregular menstrual periods were included in the study; the control group was made up of 90 healthy Caucasian women, of reproductive age, without hyp…

The malnutrition in the elderly: A clinical approach

Statins and osteoporosis: Myth or reality?

Role of hypogonadism in development of bone alterations in thalassemic patients

Although transfusions and chelation therapy have improved survival of patients afflicted with Thalassemia Major (TM), endocrine alterations are still common complications. Particularly, hypogonadism plays an important role in the aetiology of osteoporosis in these patients. It is clear that in most patients the gonadal failure is a consequence of a pituitary damage and that a hypogonadotropic hypogonadism occurs; nevertheless, also a gonadal damage because of iron deposition may be a further cause of hypogonadism. Prevalence of the pubertal failure ranges between 50 to 80% of the cases. In some studies ferritin levels have been correlated with hypogonadism, suggesting that improvement of ch…

Androgen excess and cardiovascular risk.

Cardiovascular diseases represent the major cause of death in most of developed countries and ultimately kill as many men as women. Both genders are exposed to the same risk factors but their rates of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality are very different until old age. This represents a crucial point; in fact, only at age 75 and over cardiovascular rates of women approximate those of men. It has been suggested that differences in hormonal status and mainly in androgen levels may explain such gender disparity. Consistently with this hypothesis, it has been shown that women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) have elevated cardiovascular risk despite their young age. However, the possib…