The medical condition long known as polycystic ovary syndrome, PCOS, has a new name that medical professionals claim is more accurate and hope will lead to improvements in diagnosis and care.
It will now be called polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, or PMOS.
Dozens of organizations, clinicians and researchers took part in the decade-long process to develop the new name for a condition that impacts over 170 million women across the globe.
According to a paper published in The Lancet medical journal, the term PCOS was inaccurate because it implied people with the condition had abnormal cysts on their ovaries.
The paper stated the misnomer did not capture the endocrine and metabolic dysfunction of the condition, and "contributed to delayed diagnosis, fragmented care, and stigma, while curtailing research and policy framing."
The condition is primarily characterized by fluctuations in hormones, with impacts on weight, metabolic and mental health, skin and the reproductive system, according to the Endocrine Society.
The World Health Organization said the hormonal condition leads to irregular menstrual periods, abnormal ovulation, infertility, excess facial or body hair and/or acne in women.
Researchers have found that there is no increase in abnormal ovarian cysts in the condition, further demonstrating the need to change the name.
"For too long, the name reduced a complex, long-term hormonal or endocrine disorder to a misunderstanding about ‘cysts’ and a focus on ovaries. This contributed to missed diagnoses and inadequate treatment," said the Endocrine Society.
According to WHO, up to 70% of people with PMOS are undiagnosed and part of that diagnostic gap may stem from misconceptions about what the condition actually is.
