How to Treat Polycystic Ovary Disease

Polycystic ovary disease is a hormonal syndrome found in many women. It is characterized by absent or irregular periods. Your doctor will usually treat symptoms based on your concerns, whether they are acne, infertility or hair growth. Treatment varies between cases, but symptoms can often be suppressed entirely.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Healthy diet
• Doctor or endocrinologist

Treat Polycystic Ovary Disease

1. Visit your doctor, who will rule out related conditions like diabetes and cancer. Depending on your symptoms, your doctor will prescribe a course of treatment.
2. Work towards having regular periods via a better diet. The more periods you miss, the further complications you may develop. Your doctor's first goal in treating polycystic ovary disease is to have you resume a regular menstrual cycle.
3. Exercise regularly and follow a strict diet. Sometimes, losing weight will treat most symptoms of polycystic ovary disease.
4. Know that some symptoms take much longer to treat than others. If you are dealing with excess hair growth, for example, it can take six months to a year for a noticeable change. Acne treatments also take a few months for noticeable results.
5. Consider seeking professional counseling to help cope with polycystic ovary disease. You may be embarrassed by your appearance or have insecurities related to pregnancy. Whatever your concerns are, you may that find speaking to someone about it will help.
6. Stick with your diet even if a normal menstrual cycle returns. Work with your dietitian, nutritionist or doctor to prepare a diet to maintain your weight and health.
7. Speak to your doctor about surgical treatments if your symptoms do not recede. A simple outpatient surgery can "drill" your ovaries, which causes a stimulated ovulation.
8. Check out WomensHealth.gov for more information on polycystic ovary disease (see Resources below).

Tips & Warnings

• Excess body hair can be tweezed, waxed or removed by electrolysis or laser hair removal. After several laser treatments, the majority of your hair will be gone, and new hair growth should be lighter and finer.
• Let your doctor know if you plan on becoming pregnant in the near future. Many treatments for polycystic ovary disease can reduce fertility or cause other complications. Your doctor may change your current course of treatment and provide fertility drugs to help you conceive.
• Women with polycystic ovary disease have an increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes. You will want to watch your weight and be closely monitored for this condition.

Who Can Help: