AmandaRN

I am 24, married, no children. My sister is 26, and was diagnosed with PCOS when she was 19. On my last visit to my ob/gyn, she said that i probably have PCOS as well- i have acanthosis negricans, have gained quite a bit of weight in the last 2 years, depression that gets worse before my periods. My periods are regular, but I have been on the pill for about 4 years. So... my dr. told me to stop the pill for a month, then come in for lab work on the 3rd day of my period. After 6 weeks, i finally got a period & went in. Today I found out that all my labs are normal:

TSH:1.89
FSH:5.8
LH:3.3
Insulin: 9
Prolactin: 19.2 (slightly high, but still considered "normal").

I have not had an ultrasound. I'm wondering... is it possible to have PCOS with all of these labs being normal? Is there more lab work I should be having? do i need an ultrasound? Should i get a second opinion? This is very frustrating to me, because although I'm a nurse, I work in pediatrics, & am very unfamiliar with PCOS. My dr. has said that basically, there's nothing wrong with me, and seems to think that my symptoms are all in my head. Any thoughts or suggestions??? Thanks.

CathyWood

Hi Welcome to SC. I am glad you found us. Feel free to contact me if you wish.

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Cathy 36
Lee 40
Married Feb 12, 1994
HSG Nov 2004
Brandon Aug 8, 2005

DancesWithTubas

It is possible to have PCOS without your levels completely out of the normal range. You have to realize that different labs have different "normal" ranges, so you could be at the high end of normal in one lab and the low end of not normal at another lab. Anyways, even if you don't have severely high levels, that doesn't put you in the clear. PCOS is more of a trend towards high of the different levels, coupled with the different symptoms and such.

There are many tests that can be used for diagnosis. In the book "PCOS: The Hidden Epidemic" by Samuel Thatcher M.D, he reccommends:

-A fasting comprehensive biochemical and lipid panel
-Two hour GTT with insulin levels
-LH:FSH
-Total testosterone
-DHEAS
-SHBG
-Prolactin
-TSH

He also reccomends an ultrasound, but a diagnosis can be done without it. Now, your doctor may not do all of these at once, as you don't need all of these for diagnosis (for example, I didn't get a GTT insulin level test done until AFTER I was diagnosed). However, I think to get an accurate picture, you would need more than what you got. Just my opinion, but from what I've researched, testosterone and DHEA levels are also big in making a diagnosis, just like LH and FSH. Also the physical exam is big. If you have symptoms like excess facial hair, hair loss, period irregularity, acanthosis negricans...that can point to PCOS, as well. You might talk to your doctor again, or get a second opinion. Just make sure they're respecting you and that they know enough about PCOS.

Hope all goes well. Let us know how it goes, and feel free to contact me if you need some support!

-Dances

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