A Treatment Legacy Effect of Metformin in Obese Women With PCOS
A Treatment Legacy Effect of Metformin in Obese Women With PCOS
Metformin has multiple health promoting effects and it may serve as a preventive measure for
 individuals who are at high risk for metabolic complications.

 According to the latest international guidelines it should be considered as an adjunct
 therapy to lifestyle intervention in all overweight/obese women with PCOS, independently of
 their glucose homeostasis and menstrual regularity. However, there is no clear answer for how
 long metformin should be prescribed in this subset of women with PCOS and for how long the
 beneficial impact would sustain after treatment cessation.

 The investigators compared the consequences of metformin withdrawal after long-term therapy
 as opposed to the consequences of metformin suspension after short term therapy in
 overweight/obese women with PCOS that had previously responded to metformin by means of
 moderate weight loss, improved menstrual frequency and sustained normal glucose homeostasis.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  PCOS defined by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
 criteria

 -  obesity with body mass index ≥ 30 kg/m2

 -  normal glucose homeostasis at metformin treatment

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  known type 1 or type 2 diabetes mellitus

 -  heart failure

 -  renal insufficiency with serum creatinine more than 125 umol/L

 -  arterial hypertension

 -  pregnancy

 -  BMI below 25 kg/m2