Frequency of Vitamin D deficiency in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome

Introduction: Approximately 20% of women who are of reproductive age suffer from the common endocrine illness known as polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS. Vitamin D insufficiency is common among PCOS-affected women. The symptoms of PCOS seem to be regulated by the vitamin D pathway. According to studies, women with PCOS had high frequencies of vitamin D insufficiency, ranging from 65.0% to 70.3%. Thus, we aimed to discover how common vitamin D deficiency was in women diagnosed with PCOS. Methodology: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, CMH- Rawalpindi, from January to July 2022. A total of 90 women with polycystic ovarian syndrome diagnosed on Rotterdam criteria, 18 to 40 years of age, were included through a non-probability consecutive sampling technique. Pregnant female patients with chronic illnesses were excluded. After informed consent, data was collected from patients on a self-developed questionnaire. In all patients, a 3 ml blood sample was taken and sent to the institutional pathology laboratory to measure vitamin D levels. Results: The patients' average age was 28.91 ± 4.85 years—ages 18 to 30 comprised most of the 48 patients (53.33%). The average time a person had PCOS was 3.64 ± 1.58 years. The average body mass index was 29.02 ± 2.43 kg/m2. Forty-one (45.56%) of the PCOS patients had vitamin D insufficiency. Conclusion: As the frequency of vitamin D deficiency in women with PCOS is relatively high, we recommend that early identification through screening of the affected patients should be done.