Discover how the latest research is unveiling the effects of oral isotretinoin on ovarian function in acne patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome, a prospective study that could redefine treatment protocols.
– by The Don
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The impact of oral isotretinoin on ovarian functions of acne patients complaining of polycystic ovarian syndrome: a prospective study.
Elnagar et al., J Ovarian Res 2024
DOI: 10.1186/s13048-024-01347-x
Listen, folks, we’ve got a situation here that’s huge, absolutely huge. We’re talking about women, wonderful women, who are dealing with this thing called polycystic ovarian syndrome, PCOS. It’s big, the biggest endocrine issue out there, with rates like 6 to 8%. That’s a lot of women, believe me. And acne, it’s a tough one, hits adolescents, hits adults, and it’s tied up with PCOS.
So, we did something amazing, really amazing. We took these 40 incredible women, all dealing with acne and PCOS, and we put them on this thing called isotretinoin. It’s a strong stuff, very powerful, and we gave them doses, good doses, from 0.5 to 1 milligram per kilogram. We’re thorough, so we checked their hormone levels, counted their follicles, measured their ovaries, all of that, before and after the treatment.
And let me tell you, the results, they were tremendous, absolutely tremendous. The acne scores, they plummeted, from 11.58 down to 1.65. That’s big league. And the ovaries? They shrunk down too, significant reductions on both sides. We’re talking P-values less than 0.001, that’s the kind of success you can’t ignore. Testosterone levels, hirsutism scores, down, way down after treatment.
The bottom line, and it’s a beautiful bottom line, is that isotretinoin, it could be a game-changer for these wonderful women with PCOS. But we’re not stopping here, no way. We’re going to do more trials, bigger, better, to really figure this out. It’s going to be great.
