How is PCOS diagnosed? In this episode we discuss the Rotterdam criteria along with what I've seen in clinical practice.
The Rotterdam criteria were something that came out of a meeting of the PCOS experts in 2003 in a city in the Netherlands called Rotterdam. They decided there for you to obtain a diagnosis of PCOS you needed at least 2 of the following 3 things:
- An irregular frequency of ovulation or not be ovulating at all
- Signs of high levels of androgens (male hormones) or labwork substantiating high levels
- A pelvic ultrasound with polycystic appearing ovaries.
In this episode we also discuss how PCOS is not a diagnosis of exclusion.
We dive into common symptoms of PCOS and ways doctors may consider diagnosing outside of the Rotterdam framework. I've seen it all.
At the end of this episode we encourage you to go take a quiz to see the levels of symptom severity you have and be able to use this to track symptoms over time.