Hey, just popped in because the thread was showing at the top...and was shocked at some of the misconceptions surrounding Dianette/Metformin, their risks, and the reason they work or not for the treatment of PCOS, or why they are or are not used as a long term solution. Come on ladies, it is really important to do research into the pills we are taking, even if it's just reading the information leaflet that comes with them from the pharmacist!
I can't talk much about metformin from a personal level, however my diabetic mother takes it and my cousin who is a fellow PCOS sufferer took it and it helped her weight loss which eventually led to her concieving (which was her primary complaint).
The reason it is given to women with PCOS is because studies show that we sufferers are prone to Insulin resistence, which Metformin treats. However, not every woman with PCOS has Insulin resistance...PCOS is not a definable disease the way that, say, cancer is...it is a group of symptoms commonly found together all which seem to have linked causes, thus a syndrome not a disease...however not all symptoms must be present or of any quantifiable severity.
What does this mean? Well it means that Metformin should not simply be demanded. It has and does and will work for many women in aiding their PCOS hindered weight loss attempts, which will ease the severity of other symptoms, but it is not a cure all for PCOS, and it is the resulting weight loss which helps the PCOS, not the Metformin itself. And here is a fact for you; whilst many doctors acting on their years of experience will prescribe Metformin where it is appropriate and of help to any given patient, it has not been trialled or tested for the treatment of PCOS in any medical studies, and has not technically been liscenced in the UK for the treatment of PCOS itself.
This is why I have not been given Metformin; I asked my doctor for it, as I had heard much excitement surrounding it as a treatment for PCOS, however after going through the tests it became apparent that I wasn't really showing too many signs of insulin resistence and was certainly not diabetic.
As for Dianette, the reason it is prescribed to help the symptoms of PCOS is because along with the usual Oestrogen and Progesterone it also includes Androgen blockers; these essentially desensitize your body to the androgens (male hormones, including testosterone) in your blood, thus alleviating the excess hair and acne causing sebum we produce due to our ellevated testosterone levels.
Whilst it does contain a high ammount of Oestrogen, this does not "rebalance" our hormone levels and stop the testosterone from working...it is not the balance of hormones which determines their effects, but the ammount of it in our bodies. If this was true, redressing this balance in women with PCOS who are infertile (such as myself) would presumably make them fertile again...I can promise you that it does not!
However, it does mean it is a high risk pill to be on for any woman, and will put you at a higher risk of blood clots and all associated conditions; DVT, heart attacks and strokes. Dianette technically should not be prescribed to overweight women, although it frequently is, nor should it be prescribed to those with history of blood clotting and related issues in themselves or their family, or other conditions that make you more suseptible to blood clotting. I was prescribed Dianette when I was first diagnosed with PCOS when I was 16, then when I changed my doctor when I moved away from home my new doctor took me off it straight away, horrified that due to my weight and the fact that I suffer from focal migraines (Which is linked to strokes) and the fact that my mother had suffered with DVT in the past that I had ever been put on it.
As for Yasmin, whilst I've never been on it, it too is a high oestrogen pill with androgen blockers which is why it is also prescribed to treat the symptoms of PCOS.
I think someone has already mentioned it before, but both pills do only treat the symptoms and not the cause of the symptoms. So far all my doctors and research has to say on the matter is that the only way to do that is to loose weight!
Hope this helps. I'm not a doctor, I've just had many long talks with mine whilst trying to get help with concieving, and I'm a bit manic about reading the leaflets in my pills and am a consumate wikipedia trawler ^_^;;
I can't talk much about metformin from a personal level, however my diabetic mother takes it and my cousin who is a fellow PCOS sufferer took it and it helped her weight loss which eventually led to her concieving (which was her primary complaint).
The reason it is given to women with PCOS is because studies show that we sufferers are prone to Insulin resistence, which Metformin treats. However, not every woman with PCOS has Insulin resistance...PCOS is not a definable disease the way that, say, cancer is...it is a group of symptoms commonly found together all which seem to have linked causes, thus a syndrome not a disease...however not all symptoms must be present or of any quantifiable severity.
What does this mean? Well it means that Metformin should not simply be demanded. It has and does and will work for many women in aiding their PCOS hindered weight loss attempts, which will ease the severity of other symptoms, but it is not a cure all for PCOS, and it is the resulting weight loss which helps the PCOS, not the Metformin itself. And here is a fact for you; whilst many doctors acting on their years of experience will prescribe Metformin where it is appropriate and of help to any given patient, it has not been trialled or tested for the treatment of PCOS in any medical studies, and has not technically been liscenced in the UK for the treatment of PCOS itself.
This is why I have not been given Metformin; I asked my doctor for it, as I had heard much excitement surrounding it as a treatment for PCOS, however after going through the tests it became apparent that I wasn't really showing too many signs of insulin resistence and was certainly not diabetic.
As for Dianette, the reason it is prescribed to help the symptoms of PCOS is because along with the usual Oestrogen and Progesterone it also includes Androgen blockers; these essentially desensitize your body to the androgens (male hormones, including testosterone) in your blood, thus alleviating the excess hair and acne causing sebum we produce due to our ellevated testosterone levels.
Whilst it does contain a high ammount of Oestrogen, this does not "rebalance" our hormone levels and stop the testosterone from working...it is not the balance of hormones which determines their effects, but the ammount of it in our bodies. If this was true, redressing this balance in women with PCOS who are infertile (such as myself) would presumably make them fertile again...I can promise you that it does not!
However, it does mean it is a high risk pill to be on for any woman, and will put you at a higher risk of blood clots and all associated conditions; DVT, heart attacks and strokes. Dianette technically should not be prescribed to overweight women, although it frequently is, nor should it be prescribed to those with history of blood clotting and related issues in themselves or their family, or other conditions that make you more suseptible to blood clotting. I was prescribed Dianette when I was first diagnosed with PCOS when I was 16, then when I changed my doctor when I moved away from home my new doctor took me off it straight away, horrified that due to my weight and the fact that I suffer from focal migraines (Which is linked to strokes) and the fact that my mother had suffered with DVT in the past that I had ever been put on it.
As for Yasmin, whilst I've never been on it, it too is a high oestrogen pill with androgen blockers which is why it is also prescribed to treat the symptoms of PCOS.
I think someone has already mentioned it before, but both pills do only treat the symptoms and not the cause of the symptoms. So far all my doctors and research has to say on the matter is that the only way to do that is to loose weight!
Hope this helps. I'm not a doctor, I've just had many long talks with mine whilst trying to get help with concieving, and I'm a bit manic about reading the leaflets in my pills and am a consumate wikipedia trawler ^_^;;
