Paratubal cysts, obesity, and hyperandrogenism.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine if an association exists between adolescents with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) or hyperandrogenism (HA), obesity, and paratubal cysts (PTCs).

DESIGN: An institutional review board-approved retrospective chart review was performed between the years of 1998 and 2008 at a single children's hospital. Inclusion criteria were met if pathology reports demonstrated diagnosis of PTC. Age of menarche, body mass index, surgical procedure, and findings were correlated with the presence of HA.

RESULTS: The incidence of PTCs was 7.3% among 1524 females presenting with adnexal masses. One hundred three patients had a confirmed pathology diagnosis of PTC and underwent surgery for suspected torsion or persistent adnexal mass on imaging studies. Forty-five percent of surgical cases had ovarian or adnexal torsion. Mean age of PTC diagnosis for the entire cohort was 13.7 ± 2.82 years. Mean age of menarche was 11.7 ± 1.34 years among pubertal females. Four patients were premenarchal at the time of PTC diagnosis. Forty percent of pubertal females had a diagnosis of PCOS. Pubertal adolescents with features of HA had a higher body mass index (31.3 vs 26.2 kg/m(2), P = .003) and had a trend toward larger cysts (7.6 vs 6 cm, P = .235). Overall, a significant association existed between obesity and PTC (P = .007), although no definite association could be made about HA or PCOS.

CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated an association between PTCs and obesity. In addition, HA appears to be associated with a trend toward large PTCs, although results were not significant.