I'VE OFFICIALLY BEEN DIAGNOSED

Ok, for my family and friends, I'm gonna link LOTS of stuff so you can read about each thing if you want to. Let me know if you have any other questions.

I finally had my results appointment yesterday after all the blood work and ultrasound that I had done. The doctor officially diagnosed me with PCOS, or Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. The criteria for PCOS are as follows;

1) oligomenorrhoea
2) any form of hyperandrogenemia, either clinical, being hirsutism, acne or endocrine which means the hormonal diagnosis of high androgen levels, [don't have this one] and
3) the ultrasound picture of polycystic ovaries.

"Those three are the major criteria but it’s important to realize that in order to make the diagnosis it doesn’t need to fulfill all three criteria but only two out of three. That makes it into a heterogeneous, so if you have polycystic ovaries and hyperandrogenemia you don’t need to have cycle abnormalities for the diagnosis. Or if you have cycle abnormalities and polycystic ovaries you don’t need hyperandrogenemia for the diagnosis."


I was put on Metformin to help regulate my insulin resistance (side effect of PCOS). I'm currently taking on 500mg tablet each evening, and will switch to 2-500mg tablets, one every 12 hours, on April 22nd.

I also got a referral to see an OB/GYN. Reason for Referral:

"Patient is a 23 yo G1P1 with borderline oligomennorhea [rulled out after bloodwork] and possible infertility [confirmed after blood work and ultrasound]. Patien with essentailly normal laboratory workup for infertility [all my hormone levels are normal] but with concerns for insulin resistance with possiblility of PCOS [both now confirmed with further lab work and ultrasound]. Consult place to OB/GYN for further evaluation and treatment as need for fertility with consideration for hysterosalpingogram post ultrasound. Consider Clomid. Thank you."

However, the American Hospital in Landstuhl is not currently taking civilian patients and are only seeing active duty members so I had to see our patient liaison for help in scheduling an appointment. "PT IS REFERRED TO DR VON DER OSTEN/DR MUELLER FOR EVALUATION AND CARE. INITIAL APPOINTMENT IS MON, 17 MAY 10 AT 1140 HRS." It's a German doctor, but is English speaking. I am hoping to have a lady from the liaison office accompany me to the appointment for assistance.

The downside to seeing a German doctor instead of American? The German doctors don't perform the hysterosalpingogram that my doctor is requesting. Instead, they perform a laproscopic surgery to inject dye into my uterus and watch how it distributes through my fallopian tubes to determine whether or not my tubes need to be widened to allow eggs to pass. Right now we aren't sure if this procedure is necessary. They may find that we don't need this test, and can start on Clomid sooner, rather than later.

I also received a consult to see a nutritionist. "Approximately 50 – 60% of women with PCOS are obese. However many women with PCOS experience difficulty losing weight, possibly due to high insulin levels promoting fat storage. Since high levels of insulin can cause a multitude of problems for women with PCOS, a better diet would be a low glycemic index diet." The appointment with the nutritionist will help teach me the difference between regular weight loss dieting, and dieting for individuals with PCOS and insulin resistance. I'll be scheduling that appointment on Monday.

So now I just wait for my OB/GYN appointment and continue taking the Metformin for 8 weeks. After 8 weeks I will go again to have my insulin resistance tested, and have the medication does adjusted from there.

Thanks to everyone for supporting us, sending us good wishes and checking in to see how things are going. Terry and I really appreciate all the love and support we will get. I'll be sure to update again when we have another appointment.