A study analyzed medical records of women who underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery between 2000 and 2009. Of the 566 women, 31 (5.5%) had Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) prior to their surgery. The women had a mean age of 32 and had suffered from PCOS for roughly 8 years.
Improvement in PCOS symptoms (including infertility, hirsutism, and menstrual dysfunction) roughly occurred during the first year after surgery. Furthermore, improvement or resolution in symptoms increased over time with excess weight loss.
Every woman suffering from infertility prior to surgery, who wanted to conceive, was able to conceive either naturally or by assisted reproduction within 3 years of their surgery.
Ironically, in 2009, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists published new guidelines for the recommendations and treatment of infertility and Bariatric surgery is not listed as one of the components of treatment despite this study’s positive findings of weight loss surgery helping conception.
