Bilateral ovarian lipid cell hyperplasia in a young hirsute patient.

Virilizing lipid cell ovarian hyperplasia occurred in a 24-year-old woman referred with secondary amenorrhea, hirsutism, and weight gain. Hormone analyses revealed abnormal androgen production shown in a suppression test to be autonomic and of ovarian origin. Ovarian vein catheterization revealed abnormally increased androgen levels in the left ovarian vein and in the caval vein where it was entered by the right ovarian vein. As the patient wanted to become pregnant, three-quarters of her ovarian tissue was resected. Menstruation and ovulation returned. Two years after the operation the patient conceived. Histopathological and electron microscopic examinations revealed bilateral lipid cell hyperplasia.