Open Journal of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases, 2022, 12, 225-237
https://www.scirp.org/journal/ojemd
ISSN Online: 2165-7432
ISSN Print: 2165-7424
DOI: 10.4236/ojemd.2022.1211017 Nov. 10, 2022 225 Open Journal of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases
Clinical, Psycho-Social and Metabolic Profile of
Women with Hirsutism in Yaounde
Francine Mendane Ekobena
1,2*
, Martine Claude Etoa Etoga
2,3
, Laurence Carole Ngo Yon
1,4
,
Mesmin Dehayem
2,3
, Sandrine Ongnesseck Nengom
5
, Eliane Ngassam
3
, Vanessa Balla
3
,
Eugène Sobngwi
2,3
, Jean Claude Mbanya
2,3
1
Internal Medicine, Essos Hospital Centre, Yaoundé, Cameroon
2
Department of Internal Medicine and Specialties, Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I,
Yaoundé, Cameroon
3
National Obesity Centre, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases Unit, Yaoundé Central Hospital, Yaoundé, Cameroon
4
Faculty of Medicine and pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Douala, Douala, Cameroon
5
Regional Hospital of Nkongsamba, Nkongsamba, Cameroon
Abstract
Background: Hirsutism is a clinical situation in Cameroon which is poorly
elucidated due to a paucity of clinical and biological data; hence our interest
in this study. The aim of this work was to describe the clinical, psycho-social
and metabolic profile of women with hirsutism in Yaoundé. Materials and
Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out from May
2013 to December 2013. Participants were recruited by announcement
through social media. Our study included women at least 18 years old, not in
menopausal, not pregnant, not breastfeeding, with hirsutism regardless of se-
verity. They were assessed through an interrogation, anthropometric parame-
ters, a physical examination using the modified Ferriman and Gallwey score,
the measurement of fasting capillary blood glucose and a lipid profile. The
psycho-social assessment was carried out using a pre-designed questionnaire on
the participant’s perception and daily experience with hirsutism. The metabolic
syndrome was established according to the criteria of the International Diabetes
Federation of 2005 and the National Cholesterol Education Program-third
adult treatment panel of 2001. Results: We recruited 60 women aged 27.6 ± 7.0
years. The median Ferriman and Gallwey score was 12. The mean duration of
evolution was 9 years. A family history of hirsutism was found in 88.8% of the
participants, especially in the mother. Signs of virilization were found in 3.3%
of the participants. Association was found between menstrual cycle abnor-
malities and severity of hirsutism (p = 0.023). Psycho-socially, 58.8% of
women found hirsutism normal. The metabolic syndrome was found in
21.7% and 18.3% according to the IDF and NCEP-ATP III, respectively. Con-
How to cite this paper: Ekobena, F.M.,
Etoga, M.C.E., Yon, L.C.N., Dehayem, M.,
Nengom, S.O., Ngassam, E., Balla, V.,
Sobngwi, E. and Mbanya, J.C. (2022) Clin-
ical, Psycho-Social and Metabolic Profile of
Women with Hirsutism in Yaounde. Open
Journal of Endocrine and Metabolic Dis-
eases, 12, 225-237.
https://doi.org/10.4236/ojemd.2022.1211017
Received: September 18, 2022
Accepted: November 7, 2022
Published: November 10, 2022
Copyright © 2022 by author(s) and
Scientific Research Publishing Inc.
This work is licensed under the Creative
Commons Attribution International
License (CC BY 4.0).
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Open Access