Abstract
Background: There is a lack of longitudinal studies exploring the relationships between polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and hypertension, in population-based settings. Objectives: To identify predictors of hypertension in women with and without PCOS and the relationship to body mass of index (BMI). Methods: We undertook a community-based cohort analysis of the Australian Longitudinal Study (ALSWH) data conducted on 9,688 young adult women, aged 21–42 years from 2000–2015. We conducted survival analysis using the Cox Proportional Hazards Model to identify predictors and person-time analysis to calculate incidence rates of hypertension. Results: Overall, 9,508 women were followed for 145,159 PY (person-years) and 1,556 (16.37%) women developed hypertension during the follow-up. The incidence of hypertension was significantly higher (p = 0.001) among women with PCOS (17/1000 PY) compared to women without (11/1000 PY). There were significant differences in time to hypertension development between women +/- PCOS. Hypertension was observed among women with PCOS from early adulthood and across BMI categories. The difference in the actual number of incident hypertension cases (incidence rate difference (IRD)) between women with and without PCOS, was fourfold higher (15.8 vs. 4.3 respectively) among women who were obese at baseline, compared to age-matched lean women. PCOS was independently associated with hypertension with a 36% greater risk, adjusting for BMI and other confounders. Conclusion: Our results suggest women with PCOS as more likely to develop hypertension from early adulthood, independent of BMI and with risk exacerbated by obesity.