Lipoproteins and Apolipoproteins in Women with Hirsutism

Hirsutism is caused by hyperandrogenism or increased androgen sensitivity, which occurs in 5%–15% of premenopausal women. Obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, infertility, menstrual irregularity, and polycystic ovary syndrome can occur accompanied with hirsutism. This study compares clinical, metabolic, and hormonal findings in women with and without hirsutism. This retrospective study was performed on 75 Tehranian women with ages 45–15 (22 with and 53 without hirsutism). All data were recorded in the Avicenna Research Institute information bank. PCOS and other clinical findings (acne, menstrual disturbances, and infertility), androgen profile (TT, SHBG, 17-OHP, DHEAS, and FAI), and lipid profile [TC, Apo A–I, Apo B, HDL, LDL, TG, and LP (a)] between the two groups were compared. There were no differences between the two groups in terms of age, age of menarche, and body mass index (BMI). Serum levels of total testosterone and total testosterone and DHEAS in women with hirsutism were significantly higher than those in women without hirsutism (p = 0.007 and p = 0.009, respectively). SHBG, FAI, total cholesterol, Apo A–I, Apo B, HDL, LDL, TG, and LP(a) did not differ between the two groups.
Discussion and Although the present study does not support the notion that hirsutism affects serum lipid levels, risk of other metabolic disturbances may be higher in women with hirsutism due to higher prevalence of PCOS and higher total testosterone and DHEAS.
Future prospective studies with higher sample sizes in similar comparison are recommended.