94% of researchers rate our articles as excellent or good
Learn more about the work of our research integrity team to safeguard the quality of each article we publish.
Find out more
SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Reproduction
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1567787
This article is part of the Research Topic A Lifecourse Perspective on Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS): Bridging Gaps in Research and Practice View all 15 articles
Association between waist-to-height ratio and insulin resistance in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome: A meta-analysis
Provisionally accepted- 1 Foshan Clinical Medical School of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Foshan, Guangdong, China
- 2 The First Clinical College, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, Guizhou Province, China
- 3 First Clinical Medical College, Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province, China
Insulin resistance (IR) is regarded as a significant role in the pathophysiology of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), hence early identification of IR in PCOS patients is crucial for their treatment. Recent researches indicate that Waist-to-Height Ratio (WHtR) differs in patients with PCOS accompanied by IR compared to those with PCOS alone; however, a consensus has yet to be reached. This research presents a meta-analysis of current data to propose a straightforward new index for diagnosing PCOS with insulin resistance.This study aims to assess the correlation between WHtR and insulin resistance in individuals with polycystic ovarian syndrome by meta-analysis and the synthesis of research information. This study will offer prognostic insights into the onset of insulin resistance in individuals with polycystic ovaries.This systematic review has finalized registration (CRD42025638798) on the PROSPERO platform. We conducted a search of prominent databases, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, The Cochrane Library, and performed manual searches. Observational studies of relevance (cohort, case-control, or cross-sectional) published before January 13, 2025, were considered. The methodological quality of case-control studies and cohort studies was evaluated using the NOS tool. Simultaneously, AHRQ criterias were employed to evaluate cross-sectional research. The study outcomes were reported as mean±sd. The aggregated data was analyzed using StataMP17.0.A meta-analysis encompassing nine studies with 3012 participants identified a significant correlation between an increased WHtR and the onset of insulin resistance in individuals with polycystic ovarian syndrome (SMD: 1.07, 95% CI: 0.81, 1.32, p = 0.000).Patients with PCOS and insulin resistance will exhibit a greater WHtR compared to those
Keywords: Waist-to-height ratio, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, WHtR, pcos, Insulin Resistance, Meta-analysis
Received: 28 Jan 2025; Accepted: 17 Mar 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Lan, Zhong, Li, Chen and Dai. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Yuxiang Lan, Foshan Clinical Medical School of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Foshan, Guangdong, China
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.