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. 2025 Oct;29(10):1352-1359.
doi: 10.1007/s10995-025-04155-x. Epub 2025 Sep 1.

Hypertension and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Among Women in a Nationwide Electronic Health Records Dataset in the United States

Siran He  1 , Omoye Imoisili  2 , Lyudmyla Kompaniyets  3 , Elizabeth A Lundeen  2 , Elena V Kuklina  2 , Sandra L Jackson  2
Affiliations

Hypertension and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Among Women in a Nationwide Electronic Health Records Dataset in the United States

Siran He et al. Matern Child Health J. 2025 Oct.

Abstract

Introduction: Both hypertension and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are risk factors for future cardiovascular diseases among women of reproductive age (18-44 years). We constructed an electronic health record (EHR)-based PCOS phenotype, reported PCOS prevalence, and investigated the association of PCOS and hypertension in the United States (US).

Methods: This cross-sectional study used 2022 IQVIA's Ambulatory Electronic Medical Record (AEMR)-US data (May 2023 release). We constructed a phenotype for PCOS and reported PCOS prevalence for eligible women. We then described hypertension prevalence and hypertension control estimates stratified by PCOS status. Lastly, we calculated adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) for hypertension and hypertension control by PCOS status, adjusting for age, race, and body mass index (BMI).

Results: We analyzed records for 1,301,425 eligible women, with mean (standard deviation) age of 31.5 (7.9) years. The prevalence of PCOS was 2.1%, but increased with weight category, reaching 6.7% among those with class 3 obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2). Women with PCOS had 50% higher prevalence of hypertension than those without PCOS (aPR 1.50; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.48-1.52; p < 0.001), and slightly higher hypertension control prevalence (aPR 1.14; 95% CI: 1.12-1.17; p < 0.001).

Discussion: Using a nationwide EHR dataset, we observed that women with PCOS had substantially higher hypertension prevalence than those without PCOS. PCOS prevalence was lower than previous estimates from global surveys. Following guideline-recommended blood pressure screening for women with PCOS could reduce the risk of long-term cardiovascular disease.

Keywords: Cardiovascular disease; Electronic health records; Hypertension; Polycystic ovary syndrome; Women’s health.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors have no conflict of interest to declare. Ethical Approval: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reviewed this activity, conducted consistent with applicable federal law and CDC policy: 45 C.F.R. part 46, 21 C.F.R. part 56; 42 U.S.C. Section 241(d); 5 U.S.C. Sect. 552a; 44 U.S.C. Sect. Section 3501 et seq.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow chart of the study population. AEMR, IQVIA ambulatory electronic medical record-US; PCOS, polycystic ovary syndrome
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Prevalence of polycystic ovary syndrome, hypertension, and hypertension control in AEMR-US 2022. IQVIA combines race and ethnicity in the same field. Data shown may not reflect the true racial and ethnic information. “Other” category refers to Hispanic ethnicity, multiracial, and other racial and ethnic individuals. Weight categories: underweight, BMI < 18.5 kg/m2; healthy weight, BMI ≥ 18.5 to < 25.0 kg/m2; overweight, BMI ≥ 25.0 to < 30.0 kg/m2; obesity class 1, BMI ≥ 30.0 to < 35.0 kg/m2; obesity class 2, BMI ≥ 35.0 to < 40.0 kg/m2; obesity class 3, BMI ≥ 40.0 kg/m2. AEMR-US, IQVIA Ambulatory Electronic Medical Record-US; PCOS, polycystic ovary syndrome
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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