Premature ovarian failure overview

Premature Ovarian Failure (POF) affects approximately 1-4% of the female population in the U.S., which is about 150,000 to 600,000 women. Normally, ovaries supply women with eggs until about age 51, the average age of natural menopause. POF is not menopause in that the dysfunction of the ovaries, loss of eggs, or removal of the ovaries at a young age is not a natural physiological occurrence. Infertility is the result of this condition, and is the most discussed problem resulting from it, but there are additional health implications of the problem, and studies are on-going. For example, osteoporosis or decreased bone density affects almost all women with POF due to an insufficiency of estrogen. There is also an increased risk of heart disease, hypothyroidism in the form of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Addison’s disease, and other auto-immune disorders for women with POF.

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