Hi All,

I had a tidbit of information to offer regarding PCOS.  A few months ago, 
our local ILCA Chapter hosted a talk given by Dr. Randall Craig, Medical 
Director of the Fertility Treatment Center and reproductive 
endocrinologist in Chandler, AZ.  He gave a fascinating talk about PCOS 
and its effects on breastfeeding.  Evidently PCOS tends to show up in 
people native to arid areas, including the Southwest (he theorized the 
well-known afternoon "siesta" was actually the blood sugar crashing after 
lunch).

One of the important traits he mentioned was "biphasic fertility:" young 
women with PCOS can be extremely fertile, then as they get older, that 
swings the opposite direction and they can have great difficulty 
conceiving.

He also said that if a woman is diagnosed with PCOS during pregnancy, she 
can increase her chances of successful lactation by maintaining very close 
control over her blood sugar levels, which may include starting Metformin 
a prior to birth and continue afterwards as needed.  He also encouraged 
the use of herbal and prescription galactogogues to increase mom's success.

He covered many other fascinating aspects and theories about PCOS.  It was 
a very exciting presentation.

Personally I've seen a handful of hypoplasia cases, with and without PCOS, 
in my relatively short time as an IBCLC, with varying success rates.  Like 
any breastfeeding problem, they did seem to come in "bunches."  One woman 
developed PCOS by using steroids during a four-year stint as a bodybuilder 
in her late teens.

Debbie Gillespie, IBCLC, LLLL
Sunny Tempe, AZ

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