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Primary Ovarian Insufficiency

  • Management of Menopause (K-E Huang, Section Editor)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) is a syndrome of amenorrhoea, sex steroid deficiency, and elevated gonadotropins in a woman aged more than two standard deviations below the mean age for menopause estimated for her reference population. In practical terms, it occurs spontaneously in 1 % of women before the age of 40 years. Apart from idiopathic POI, many women will have impaired ovarian function by age 40 years as a consequence of surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy. Of identifiable causes of POI, the most common are concurrent autoimmune diseases such as thyroid and adrenal disease, and chromosomal abnormalities such as Turner syndrome and Fragile X syndrome. Women with POI have an increased risk of heart disease, osteoporosis, stroke, cognitive impairment, and premature death. These risks appear to be greater following a surgical menopause. POI is associated with an increased prevalence of anxiety, depression, and loss of self-esteem. Whilst most women with POI will remain infertile following their diagnosis, many will menstruate again and 5 – 10 % will become pregnant. The keys to good management are a multidisciplinary approach, careful long-term follow–up, and appropriate use of hormone replacement therapy.

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Conflict of Interest

Rodney J. Baber and Michele Kwik declare that they have no conflict of interest

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Suites, North Shore Private Hospital, Westbourne St., St Leonards, NSW, 2065, Australia

    Rodney J. Baber

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Sydney, St. Leonards, Australia

    Rodney J. Baber & Michele Kwik

  3. IVFAustralia, Level 2, 176 Pacific Highway, Greenwich, NSW, 2065, Australia

    Michele Kwik

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  1. Rodney J. Baber
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  2. Michele Kwik
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Correspondence to Rodney J. Baber.

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Baber, R.J., Kwik, M. Primary Ovarian Insufficiency. Curr Obstet Gynecol Rep 3, 223–231 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13669-014-0094-7

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