Table 2: Studies on medical interventions in polycystic ovary syndrome populations.
| Studies | Drug, treatment period | Number of patients treated | Findings | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orio, 2005105 | Metformin, 6 months | 32 | ET-1 decreased; FMD increased; diameter after reactive hyperaemia decreased; IMT decreased | |
| Diamanti-Kandarakis, 200515 | Metformin, 6 months | 20 | ET-1 decreased; FMD increased; no change in NID | |
| Sahin, 2007106 | Metformin, 6 months | 20 | No change in IMT | |
| Heutling, 200835 | Metformin, 6 months | 21 | No change in CRP/IL-6; IMT decreased | |
| Jensterle, 2008107 | Rosiglitazone, 6 months | 11 | FMD increased; no change in NID | |
| Jensterle, 2008107 | Metformin, 6 months | 15 | FMD increased; no change in NID | |
| Romualdi, 2008108 | Metformin, 6 months | 13 | FMD increased | |
| Luque-Ramírez, 200944 | OCP, 6 months | 15 | No change in FMD/NID | |
| Luque-Ramírez, 200944 | Metformin, 6 months | 12 | No change in FMD/NID | |
| Luque-Ramírez, 2009109 | OCP, 6 months | 15 | IMT decreased | |
| Luque-Ramírez, 2009109 | Metformin, 6 months | 19 | IMT decreased | |
| Tan, 2009110 | Metformin, 6 months | 21 | IMT decreased | |
| Mancini, 2010111 | OCP with drospirenone, 6 months | 28 (16 lean; 12 overweight) | FMD increased only in overweight; no change in ET-1 | |
| Palomba, 2010112 | Metformin, 6 months | 24 | ET-1 decreased; FMD increased; diameter after reactive hyperaemia decreased; IMT decreased | |
| Palomba, 2010112 | Metformin, folate, 6 months | 23 | ET-1 decreased; FMD increased; diameter after reactive hyperaemia decreased; IMT decreased | |
| Gode, 2011113 | OCP, 6 months | 40 | IMT increased; no change in FMD, NID, CRP | |
| Naka, 201157 | Pioglitazone, 6 months | 14 | FMD increased | |
| Naka, 201157 | Metformin, 6 months | 15 | FMD increased | |
| Naka, 201158 | OCP, 6 months | 13 | FMD increased | |
| Raja-Khan, 2011114 | Atorvastatin, 6 weeks | 9 | CRP decreased; no change in FMD | |
| Bajuk Studen, 2013115 | spironolactone per 21-day for a cycle of 28 days, 6 months | 30 | FMD increased | |
| Tan, 201163 | Metformin, 6 months | 21 | IMT decreased; no change in CRP | |
| Ilie, 2012116 | OCP, drospirenone, metformin, 6 months | 25 | FMD increased; no change in CRP | |
| Karabulut, 2012117 | OCP, 6 months | 30 | No change in IMT | |
| Pepene, 201268 | Ethinylestradiol/drospirenone, 6 months | 25 | FMD increased IMT increased; no change in CRP | |
| Vieira, 2012118 | OCP, 6 months, 12 months | 21 | No change in FMD, IMT; carotid artery stiffness index improved at 6 and 12 months | |
| Vieira, 2012118 | OCP spironolactone, 6 months, 12 months | 20 | No change in FMD, carotid artery stiffness index; IMT increased at 12 months | |
| Mohiyiddeen, 2013119 | Metformin, 3 months | 17 | No change in ED and EID microcirculation | |
| Mohiyiddeen, 2013119 | Rosiglitazone, 3 months | 18 | No change in ED microcirculation; EID increased | |
| Sprung, 2013120 | 16-week exercise programme | 10 | FMD increased | |
| Tan, 201377 | Metformin, 6 months | 21 | No change in CRP, TNF-α; IMT decreased | |
| Shokeir, 201487 | Laparoscopic ovarian drilling | 34 | FMD increased | |
| Tan, 201486 | Metformin, 6 months | 21 | No change in CRP, TNF-α, IL-6; IMT decreased | |
| Kaya, 2015121 | Metformin, OCP, 6 months | 25 | No change in FMD, IMT | |
| Kaya, 2015121 | OCP, 6 months | 25 | No change in FMD, IMT | |
| Kahal, 201591 | Liraglutide, 6 months | 19 | No change in CRP, sP-selectin, sICAM, sVCAM, reactive hyperaemic index, IMT | |
| Orio, 2016122 | OCP, 6 months | 47 | No change in FMD, IMT, CRP | |
| Orio, 2016122 | Structured exercise training programme, 6 months | 39 | FMD increased; IMT decreased; CRP decreased | |
| Yang, 201696 | Simvastatin, 6 months | 21 | ET-1 decreased; FMD increased; ABI impaired | |
| Wang, 2018101 | Metformin, 3 months | 80 | FMD increased; CRP decreased | |
| Ely, 2019123 | Heat therapy, 8–10 weeks | 9 | CRP decreased; FMD increased; carotid wall thickness decreased; femoral wall thickness decreased | |
| Talari, 2018124,125 | Carnitine, 12 weeks | 30 | IMT decreased; no change in CRP | |
| Talari, 2018124,125 | 1,000 mg omega-3, 400 IU vitamin E, 12 weeks | 30 | IMT decreased; CRP decreased | |
| Alexandraki, 2020104 | Metformin, 6 months | 20 | AIX@75 decreased; ET-1 decreased | |
*Endothelial function determined as ratio between the arterial pulse-wave amplitude following a 5-minute arterial occlusion in the forearm to the pre-occlusion value.
ABI = ankle-brachial index; AIX@75 = AI corrected for heart rate; CRP = high sensitivity C-reactive protein; ED = endothelium-dependent; EID = endothelium-independent; ET-1 = endothelin-1 plasma levels; FMD = flow-mediated dilatation; IL = interleukin; IMT = intima-media thickness; NID = nitrate-induced endothelial-independent dilatation; OCP = oral contraceptive pill; sICAM = soluble intercellular adhesion molecule; sP-selectin = soluble platelet selectin; sVCAM = soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule; TNF = tumour necrosis factor.