Endocrinological and clinical analysis of hyperprolactinemic patients with and without ultrasonically diagnosed polycystic ovarian changes.

In the present study we aimed to identify the relationship of hyperprolactinemia and polycystic ovarian changes. We retrospectively analyzed the endocrinological and clinical features of 79 hyperprolactinemic patients detected during a 3-year period ending in March 1995. Patients who had hypothyroidism, macroprolactinoma and drug-induced hyperprolactinemia were excluded from the study. Among 61 hyperprolactinemic patients, 41 (67.2%) had ultrasonographically diagnosed polycystic ovaries (PCO). Prolactin levels in the PCO and non-PCO groups were 32.8 +/- 5.8 and 36.7 +/- 5.1 ng/dl, respectively, which was a significant difference (p < 0.05). Hirsutism was associated with hyperprolactinemia in 55.7% of the patients and was found to be more frequent in the PCO (58.8%) than the non-PCO group (41.2%). The mean Ferriman Gallwey scores and both total and free testosterone levels were significantly higher in the PCO group in comparison to the non-PCO group. In addition, a significantly higher body mass index was detected in patients with PCO. We documented a frequent association between hyperprolactinemia and polycystic ovarian changes and suggested that hyperprolactinemia in PCO is most likely related to a pathologic-endocrinologic milieu.