Are Psychosocial Consequences of Obesity and Hyperandrogenism Present in Adolescent Girls with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome?

STUDY OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate whether body weight status and clinical hyperandrogenism may influence social competencies and psychological gender features in adolescent girls. DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: In 104 adolescent girls, psychological gender inventory (PGI) and social competencies questionnaire (SCQ) (assessing social abilities in three aspects: intimacy (I), social exposure (SE), and assertiveness (AS)) were performed. Subjects were divided into four subgroups: G1—24 nonobese girls without hyperandrogenism, G2—18 obese girls without hyperandrogenism, G3—30 nonobese hyperandrogenic girls, and G4—32 obese girls with hyperandrogenism. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in all parts of SCQ and PGI between the study and control groups. The feminine woman type dominated in all groups; in G3 and G4, masculine woman type appeared more often than in G1 and G2 (13.3% and 12.5% versus 4.0% and 0.0%, resp.). In G4, positive relationship between BMI z-score and SCQ (r = 0.4, p = 0.03) was found. In G1, the relationship was opposite (r = −0.5, p = 0.03). Hirsutism correlated negatively with SCQ (r = −0.5, p = 0.02), I (r = −0.5, p = 0.02), and AS (r = −0.5, p = 0.02) only in G1; in other groups, this relationship was insignificant. In G4, higher testosterone level was associated with lower SCQ (r = −0.5, p = 0.008) and AS (r = −0.5, p = 0.003). In G2, testosterone concentration correlated positively with SCQ (r = 0.6, p = 0.01), SE (r = 0.5, p = 0.02), and AS (r = 0.6, p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: In adolescent girls, neither body weight nor clinical features of hyperandrogenism seem to be the source of evaluated disorders in psychological functioning.