My daughter is 15 and we saw an endocrinologist due to hirsutism on her face/neck and acne. She is not overweight and is physically active (runner.) Her ultrasound was reportedly negative for polycystic ovaries, but the endocrinologist thinks she has early/mild PCOS due to very irregular cycles and above symptoms. DHEA was elevated and testosterone levels on high end of normal. Yasmin and spironolactone (150 mg/day) along with 2 laser treatments have significantly helped with the acne and hair growth and cycle regularity and she is very happy about that. She has been on these meds for only about 1 and a half months. We are also trying to follow a lower carb diet.
My concern is that I don't want her on the pill long term because I want her own body to regulate and ovulate on its own. I have done a lot of reading on metformin and it seems to work well for many people to balance hormones and promote regular ovulation. I discussed this with the doctor and he said he mainly uses metformin for overweight patients or those trying to conceive. He did check her fasting glucose and insulin at my request and these were reported to me as normal. I later called for the levels: glucose 74 and insulin less that 2. With these being low, would this mean metformin would not be indicated or could drop her too low? I am desperate to keep her healthy and also do all we can to preserve her fertility. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
First of all, congrats on your DD getting dxd early. I can tell you that metformin does help patients even if they aren't overweight. I was never dxd with any cysts either, but I had many of the same side effects as your DD, except I had the weight issue. Metformin does not work directly on sugar levels in the body, so it won't "wash her out". The way it works is, it resensitizes your cells to use your insulin more efficiently. Since insulin is a master hormone, met helps to allow the hormones slip back into a normal balance. Even though someone may be of normal weight, and perhaps not even trying to conceive, your hormones can still be all wacky, and that shows up as hirsutism, irregular or painful cycles and hair loss. Even though I have been at my goal weight now for over 2.5 years, my docs still keep me at my dose of met to keep everything in line. It 's just what I need to keep everything in balance. Hope this helps, and I'm proud of you for all the research you've done...the best thing you can do!
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Many of your concerns are addressed there and you can read for yourself the studies out there on met. I added one recently on teens, so definetly do some sleuthing and I think you'll feel better.
All the best to you and your daughter!
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33 yrs, 1 precious hubby, 2 miracle kids, At Goal Wt for 4 yrs, Trygly's down 445 pts, Free Androgen down from 20 to 2, 3 half 'thons ran, 2 mtns hiked, 1 crazy run in the Rockies, 4 forest trail races, profiled in 2 magazines...1 woman determined to kick PCOS butt!
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Thank you both so much for the helpful information. It will take some time to read through all that research, but I am determined to do it, and maybe copy some of the articles to send to her doctors. I feel so hopeful that metformin may be the long-term solution, along with diet and exercise, to regulate her hormones, clear up the hair and acne, and eventually ovulate regularly. Thank you.
Teens and metformin 
