Role of Vitamin D in the treatment of polycystic ovarian syndrome: A systematic review

Abstract

8–13% of women in the reproductive age group are affected by Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and around 70% of cases stay undiagnosed worldwide. It is one of the most common causes of infertility nowadays. Polycystic ovarian morphology, hyperandrogenism, and ovulatory dysfunction are traits of PCOS. Insulin resistance is the primary finding in the pathophysiology of PCOS.Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that can be found as a dietary supplement. Hypovitaminosis is a risk for glucose intolerance so it has been found that supplementing vitamin D in females with PCOS lowers insulin resistance, total testosterone, and androstenedione levels and improves pressure profiles. Obese PCOS patients have been found to have lower vitamin D levels than PCOS patients who are not obese. This review aims at the pathophysiology of PCOS and the role of Vitamin D supplementation in PCOS patients.A literature search was performed to identify all relevant studies on PubMed, Google Scholar, Crossref, Medline, and Cochrane. The keyword used were; “Vitamin-D”, “Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)”, “fertility”, “insulin resistance”, and “androgen hormones”. All relevant articles including review articles, original articles, case series, and case reports were reviewed.It was found that Vitamin D supplementation has beneficial effects on reproductive outcome, metabolic abnormalities and regulating menstrual cycle in PCOS patients. Understanding importance of Vitamin D level in treating PCOS patient is of great clinical significance in preventing disease progression.