[Etiopathogenetic aspects and clinical implications of insulin resistance in polycystic ovary syndrome].

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a heterogeneous pathological condition characterized by a number of clinical, endocrine and pathological anatomic aspects. The heterogeneity of these factors and the variability of their presence makes it difficult to classify the syndrome and define it precisely as a separate nosographic entity. It is also difficult to position it with precision among the insulin-resistant syndromes in view of the multiple pathogenetic hypotheses that have been proposed over the years which are still the subject of numerous studies and deserve further confirmation. Data regarding beta-cell secretion in PCOS are also discordant; numerous experimental findings are therefore required to define this aspect correctly. On the basis of the most recent data reported in the international literature, the authors affirm the importance of considering this syndrome both from a purely endocrine point of view and in metabolic terms, for the therapeutic purpose of restoring hormone status and preventing, where possible, the onset of metabolic changes.