Anyone NOT IR and on Met?

[secsll]

Gearing up my arsenal for the new doc. I know I'll get tested for IR...but I'm looking for a contingency plan if the test shows normal like my last one did 3 yrs ago. I want that script! I know I need the fasting glucose test, but I keep forgetting the other one.

Can anyone give me some info? I'm especially looking for non-IR cysters on Met since I've got tons of researching supporting it for both.

[Canadian Kokopelli]

I've never been tested for IR and I'm on met. The doctor didnt test since there are studies showing that non-IR women can benefit from met too.

The other test that you want to test for IR is a fasting insulin.

Good luck at your appointment!

[oohmercyme]

I am not IR (was tested) and am on 1500mg. AF has been irregular for the past 10 years (missing for months at a time or lasting for months at a time) and since starting Met a year ago, I have had 10 periods! I actually ovulate!

It's the only thing that has worked for me. The doc isn't even sure I have PCOS (though I have many of the symptoms) but she was at her wits end so tried met.

YEAH MET!

Good luck with your appointment!

[snowbunny]

I'm not 'OFFICIALLY' IR, and I'm on met. My endo put me on met after noting my symptoms and inability to lose weight and then reviewing my LH/FSH, Estrogen and Testosterone.

She said that most PCOSers should be treated as though they are I.R. even if the tests don't show it . . .

[AndreaC]

I agree. Apparently all PCOSers have some degree of IR and should be treated as IR. I haven't been tested and I'm on 1000mg of Met.

BTW. I live in England and it's so tough to get Met over here but I got it! I'm sure you will!

Only been on it for a month so no change to report YET!

HTH.

Andrea.

[CMUgradgirl]

just out of curiosity, what should fasting insulin levels be for one to be considered IR?

Thanks!!

[bbro]

My Doctor said that I wasn't IR, but I could go ahead and take Met to try and lose some weight. I am only on 500 mgs of it though and will be until my next appointment. I know that this is low, but I am fine with it because at least something is happening, ya know!
I will tell you this, I just started it last Sunday, so I don't know if it is helping with the weight yet, but I feel ten times better. People have commented on my moods and how much happier I am. I am sure that it is just a mental thing that I am starting to feel better about myself and that someone isn't blowing off the problem, but for all I know it is because of the met.

Just my 2 cents

[oohmercyme]

Originally posted by AndreaC

BTW. I live in England and it's so tough to get Met over here but I got it! I'm sure you will!

I am moving to London in November and was worried about that, so I got a one year supply of Met to take with me! Hope they don't take me for a drug mule at customs!

[christyz]

I was always borderline in my insulin tests.

If you go to the FAQ thread , there is tons of info on non-IR women and met. Print it up and maybe you can discuss it with your Dr.

just out of curiosity, what should fasting insulin levels be for one to be considered IR?

Normal is <30 MIU/ml. But according to Fertility plus, "The normal range here doesn't give all the information. A fasting insulin of 10-13 generally indicates some insulin resistance, and levels above 13 indicate greater insulin resistance".

Hope it helps!

[secsll]

Thanks ladies for all your responses! This info is really helpful to me and I fully intend to share it with my doc next week. From what I hear, he has no problem rx'ing it for PCOS..but I just want my bases covered in case he is a stickler on the IR issue.

[lissadell]

Hey Savannah,

I'm on met ER 2,000 mgs daily but not IR. Can send you some links to studies to add to your arsenal if you're interested!

HTH!
Lissa

[secsll]

Thats why you're my ace!! Send away. I'm still researching more and more!

I'm actually in the middle of reviewing some old test data from my medical records on my last test a couple years ago. I HATE doctor chicken scratch! I can’t figure out where I fell even back then cuz she didn’t list what units she was using. I had these numbers:

Glucose: 78
Insulin: 7.7
Testosterone: 63
Free Test: .16

I’m looking through the board FAQ’s to see if I can make sense of any of those.
Anyone that can shed some light, please do.

[lissadell]

Let's see, assuming standard measurement units for your lab:

Glucose and Insulin look normal. As you may know, Insulin can be in the normal ranges on a lab report, but you can still be IR. My endo considers anything > 10 to be a sign of some IR. Based on your results, it looks like your not IR. HOWEVER, your fasting insulin can not show IR, but it could show up on a Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT)

Testosterone is also, technically, "normal" - though I've read that > 50 is considered somewhat elevated. FYI, the lab ranges I've seen around here usually have a top end of 86, but my lab's top end is 70. It's important to have your lab's reference ranges when looking at your numbers.

The free testosterone number is a little confusing. My labs have a free testosterone measurement and a % free testosterone measurement. So, it's hard to interpret which one your number represents. Either way, yours looks low-normal.

And here's a link to one study on insulin-sensitizing meds and non-IR cysters:

Insulin-sensitizers for non-IR PCOSers

Only a week to go until the big appt. - right?

[lissadell]

Link didn't work, here's text of the article I mentioned:

"ENDO: Insulin-sensitizing Medications Aid Polycystic Ovary Syndrome,
Even Without Insulin Resistance, Obesity"

Treatment with insulin-sensitizing medications such as metformin
(Glucophage®) promotes ovulation and reduces testosterone levels in
women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), even if they are relatively
lean and insulin-responsive. These findings, reported at ENDO 2002, the
84th Annual Meeting of the Endocrine Society, indicate that physicians
may want to use insulin-sensitizing therapy in all women with PCOS,
rather than relying on clinical assessments of insulin sensitivity,
according to the investigators. "Even if a woman with PCOS doesn't have
obesity or other symptoms that would lead the physician to suspect
insulin resistance, insulin-sensitizing drugs are effective," lead
investigator Jean-Patrice Baillargeon, MD, said. "It was a surprising
outcome to see that relatively lean women will have lower insulin
levels, begin to ovulate, and have lower testosterone levels." Dr.
Baillargeon is a clinical research fellow in endocrinology at Virginia
Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, United States and
collaborated in his research with John Nestler, professor of medicine at
Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Baillargeon is currently on
leave from his position as a professor of medicine at the University of
Sherbrooke in Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. In this study sponsored by
the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Baillargeon and colleagues
randomly assigned 100 women with PCOS who were neither overweight nor
hypertensive to receive metformin, rosiglitazone (Avandia®), combination
therapy, or placebo. The doses for the insulin sensitizers were 850 mg
twice daily for metformin and 4 mg twice daily for rosiglitazone. Every
six months, the investigations assessed the women with respect to number
of ovulations during the observation period, any changes in systolic
blood pressure, and changes in free testosterone. The average body mass
index (BMI) for the women was 24.5, which is considered to be within
normal weight. The metformin monotherapy group had a mean of 3.3
ovulations during this period, compared to 2.4 for the rosiglitazone
monotherapy group and 3.4 for the combination group. The placebo arm
had a mean of 0.4 ovulations during the study period (p<0.0001). The
metformin group had a mean reduction of 4.3 mm Hg in systolic blood
pressure, compared to 2.6 mm Hg for the rosiglitazone group, 4.5 mm Hg
for the combination group, and 1.0 mm Hg for the placebo group
(p=0.012). Free testosterone levels dropped 12.8 pmol/L in the
metformin group, 12.3 pmol/L in the rosiglitazone group, 21.9 pmol/L in
the combination group, and 1.2 pmol/L in the placebo group (p=0.0001).
"If using an insulin sensitizer, rosiglitazone alone will not produce
sufficient change in PCOS symptoms," Dr. Baillergeon said. "Either
metformin monotherapy or combination therapy should be used."

[Candace]

Fasting insulin and insulin with a glucose load....that is where I must have shown incredible amounts of insulin. I only asked for the fasting insulin (which was normal at 5) but upon the sugar load watch out!!! I felt horrible (extremely sleepy and drugged and foggy feeling!) I hope your doctor will listen to us and allow you to try Met. I am on the XR and it has truly been life changing for me.

Candace