Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine disorders in reproductive-aged women. Women with PCOS exhibit a wide range of symptoms such as amenorrhea, oligomenorrhea, hirsutism, subfertility or infertility, anovulation, weight gain or obesity, acne vulgaris, and androgenic alopecia. They also experience higher rates of depression and anxiety than women in the general population. High anxiety levels have also been reported in adolescent girls with PCOS.

The Rotterdam criteria, which are now the internationally accepted diagnostic criteria for PCOS, require any two of the following three criteria: oligo or anovulation, clinical and/or biochemical hyperandrogenism, and polycystic ovaries. PCOS have a significant negative impact on women’s health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and psychological function. Globally, there has been an increasing focus on this aspect because it is a reflection of the true impact of the condition on the patients’ lives.

The reasons for the higher prevalence of anxiety and depression in PCOS are complex. Emotional distress could have psychosocial and/or pathophysiological causes. Visible features such as hirsutism, acne, and alopecia, as well as its potential consequences such as menstrual irregularity, infertility, and obesity, can be deeply stigmatizing to women. In a qualitative study on the subjective experience of PCOS, women described as feeling robbed of their self-concept, essence of being feminine, and attractive, thus making PCOS, the “thief of womanhood.”