A study recently published in the British Medical Journal found that women who have polycystic ovary syndrom are at risk for developing other issues including preeclampsia and diabetes as well as at risk of giving birth prematurely. PCOS effects between five and fifteen percent of childbearing-aged women. The study followed some 3,800 women with PCOS and compared them to roughly 1.2 million healthy live births. They found that women with PCOS were 45% more likely to have preeclampsia. They also found that these women’s babies were more likely to be large for their gestational age and suffer from asphyxia.

Researcher Nick Mackleon of the University of Southampton, England felt that preventative treatments like glucose control could help with this stating “It is clear that women with polycystic ovary syndrome should be considered ‘high risk’ obstetric patients and that midwives, general practitioners and obstetricians should monitor these women as such.”