Title : Frequency of C-PTSD and associations between PCOS and CPTSD among women and adolescent in Pakistan
Abstract:
Background: PCOS, a chronic incurable hormonal disorder, is a rising epidemic and is documented to severely affect the mental and physical health of women. CPTSD is a mental health disorder that occurs after prolonged or repeated traumas. Current literature supports that both PCOS and C-PTSD share a common HPA dysregulation mechanism. However, no studies exist investigating the link between the two phenomena.
Objectives: To determine association between presence of CPTSD and diagnosis of PCOS among women in Pakistan
Methodology: A case control study was conducted in Pakistan, over a period of 6 months. Cases and Controls were recruited from hospitals all over Pakistan. A total of 155 Cases were recruited from March 2025-September 2025 and matched to 161 controls. Association was determined by applying Chi square and t-test. Data was analyzed using SPSS v.28 (12). P-value < 0.05 was considered significant.
Results: PTSD (t=3.9; p<0.001; Chi-square = 31.57 ) and CPTSD(t=2.68; p=0.008; Chi-square = 15.02 ) was higher in women with PCOS. DSO positivity was somewhat higher in PCOS group(t=0.98; p=0.326;Chi-square=3.18).
A higher proportion of women with PCOS reported a history of trauma (64.2%). Psychological and emotional symptoms were also significantly more frequent among PCOS patients, including anxiety (75.5% vs 37.4%, p<0.001) and depression (42.6% vs 24.5%, p=0.001).
Conclusion: Women with PCOS in our dataset showed significantly higher PTSD and CPTSD severity scores, but not significantly higher DSO scores, illuminating the need of comprehensive studies.The trauma symptoms in PCOS women may be more reactive (PTSD: hypervigilance, re-experiencing, avoidance) rather than identity-based (DSO: feeling worthless, broken in relationships) PCOS trauma is situational (body-related, stigma-related) rather than developmental.
