THU649 PCOS Phenotype In Unselected Populations (P-PUP) Study: Defining And Comparing Hirsutism Across Various Ethnic Groups In Unselected Populations

Disclosure: S. Kiconco: None. A.E. Joham: None. L.V. Suturina: None. X. Zhao: None. A. Gambineri: None. F.R. Tehrani: None. B.O. Yildiz: None. J. Kim: None. H.J. Teede: None. R. Azziz: None.

Introduction Hirsutism is defined as the male pattern distribution of terminal hair in a female. It is one of the diagnostic features of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), reflecting clinical hyperandrogenism, as measured by the modified Ferriman-Gallwey score (mFG). However, whether the mFG scores and the normative cut-off varies by ethnicity is unclear. We aimed to describe and compare the distribution of mFG score in different ethnic groups from eight countries using data from unselected (medically unbiased) populations to determine and compare the normative cut-off values between the different ethnic groups and the prevalence of hirsutism thereby defined. Methods We utilised data of 10,919 participants aged 15 to 80 years. Data were obtained from epidemiologic studies assessing unselected women conducted in different countries including China, Iran, Italy, Nigeria, Russia, South Korea, Turkey, and the United States of America. The distribution of mFG between ethnic groups was determined descriptively as medians. Cluster analysis (k means, k=2) and the receiver operating characteristics curve were used to determine the normative cut-offs for the mFG score. All medians, cut-offs and percentile values were compared between ethnic groups using the Kruskal-Wallis test at a 95% level of significance. Results Our data consisted of 11 ethnic groups from 8 countries. The Persian (4.8±4.7) and Italian (4.8±4.7) populations had higher median mFG scores than the rest of the ethnic groups, whilst Asian populations (Chinese, Korean and Buryat) had the lowest scores. Overall, the median distribution of mFG differed significantly by ethnicity. Using cluster analysis, the mFG cut offs range from 4 to 9, with the Persian ethnic group having the highest, followed by the Italian group, with cut-offs differing by ethnicity overall; however cut offs are similar for Black American, Turkish, Asian and Russian groups. Conclusion The distribution and normal cut off values for hirsutism differ significantly by ethnicity, with the Persian population having the highest cut offs. Ethnicity needs to be considered when assessing women for clinical hyperandrogenism.

Presentation: Thursday, June 15, 2023