Associations of vitamin D concentration with metabolic and hormonal indices in women with polycystic ovary syndrome presenting abdominal and gynoidal type of obesity

Goal: The aim of the study was to estimate potential associations of vitamin D concentration with metabolic and hormonal indices in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) presenting abdominal and gynoidal type of obesity. Material and methods: Twenty-six women with PCOS (19-49 years old, BMI: 26.8-53.8 kg/m(2)), presenting predominantly abdominal and gynoidal type of obesity, were recruited. Anthropometric measures, body composition using dual-energy absorptiometry, fasting serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, leptin, glucose, insulin, homeostatic model of assessment (HOMA), lipids, androgens and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHGB) were estimated. Results: Vitamin D insufficiency was found in 2, and deficiency or deep deficiency in 12 patients. Levels of vitamin D were lower in obese than non-obese women, and in patients with abdominal as compared to gynoidal obesity (9.60 +/- 3.7 vs. 16.02 +/- 3.3 ng/mL, p<0.04). In obese women, vitamin D correlated negatively with all, except for gynoidal fat, measures of obesity, fasting glucose levels, and HOMA. No correlations with androgens were found. In women with abdominal obesity, vitamin D correlated with luteinizing hormone/follicle-stimulating hormone ratio (LH/FSH) and SHBG. Conclusions: We demonstrated that women with PCOS are often vitamin D deficient. Its concentration was lower in patients with predominantly abdominal obesity as compared to subjects with gynoidal fat excess. In overweight/obese subjects with PCOS, vitamin D correlated with fasting glucose and HOMA. The correlation with LH/FSH suggests that vitamin D status may contribute to hormonal dysregulation. Further studies are needed to elucidate a potentially different impact of abdominal and subcutaneous fat on vitamin D metabolism.