Endocrine Profile of Obese Fertile and Obese Infertile Women of Childbearing Age A Multicenter Case-Control Study in Peshawar.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: A multicenter case-control study was aimed to compare the endocrine profile of obese fertile and obese infertile women of childbearing age.

METHODOLOGY: There were 100 participants in this study, of which 50 were fertile and 50 were infertile. The information was gathered on menstrual history, years of marriage, and years of trying to conceive. Each case and control underwent a thorough examination, and investigations, including ultrasound and hysterosalpingogram, were performed to determine any other causes of infertility and to exclude polycystic ovary syndrome. Lab tests were conducted for the following hormone levels: luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), prolactin, insulin, and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH).

RESULTS: For the fertile group, the average or mean age was 34.88 years, whereas for the infertile group, the average or mean age was 30.48 years. All the participants had a history of normal, regular menstrual cycles. The mean for both the cases and controls was 30 days. The majority (60-92%) of the patients had normal LH, FSH, prolactin, insulin, and TSH levels. However, the insulin levels in both the cases and controls were more significant than the typical values in over 30% of the subjects. The rest of the hormone levels were more important than usual in only 4-18% of patients of both groups. Both groups found all mean values of LH, FSH, TSH, prolactin and insulin within the normal range. The Chi-square test revealed an insignificant difference in three categories (< normal, regular, and > routine) in each hormone level in fertile and infertile groups. The t-test showed a negligible association with each hormone parameter's mean values between fertile and infertile women.

CONCLUSION: The study showed that the hormone insulin must have some relation to obesity but not necessarily to infertility. We found no significant difference between fertile and infertile groups in hormonal profiles.