Pre-Pregnancy: Fertility problemsQ.How do anti-diabetic drugs help PCOS?A.A proportion of women with PCOS have been found to have a high level of insulin in their blood. This would usually cause a low blood sugar, but these women seem to be resistant to the action of insulin in some way. Some doctors believe this is the central cause of PCOS. Drugs such as metformin, which is an anti-diabetic drug, increase the sensitivity to insulin and therefore should reduce the symptoms of PCOS. They do not work in all cases but they may help a woman with PCOS lose weight and they may increase the chances of ovulation in a woman who has infrequent periods. Their side effects are mainly nausea and vomiting, so the dose is often increased slowly to active levels. They may be useful in combination with clomiphene. |
