Metabolic association of serum prolactin in polycystic ovary syndrome: A retrospective analysis of 840 patients in Bangladesh

Abstract

Aims

To explore the metabolic influence of prolactin in subjects with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Methods

This retrospective cross-sectional study analyzed data of women newly diagnosed with PCOS attending the Endocrinology outpatient department of a tertiary hospital in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, during 2017–2022. Clinical, anthropometric, and laboratory data, including results of oral glucose tolerance test, measurements of serum lipids, total testosterone (TT), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), and prolactin, were extracted and analyzed. Cases of high prolactin (≥100 ng/mL) were excluded.

Results

840 cases [median age 21.5 (18.0–25.7) years] were considered for final analysis; 17.1 % had hyperprolactinemia. Serum prolactin had significant negative correlations (P < 0.05) with age (r_s = − 0.153), body mass index (r_s = − 0.172), waist circumference (r_s = − 0.193), triglyceride (r_s = − 0.174), and TT (r_s = − 0.133) levels, and the presence of metabolic syndrome (r_s = − 0.073) and positive correlations with TSH (r_s = 0.090). In multiple regression analysis, prolactin was inversely associated with fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and positively associated with TSH after correcting for age and BMI.

Conclusion

An inverse association exists between serum prolactin levels and some metabolic risk factors, such as FPG, in women with PCOS.