ESPE Abstracts

Background: Both, obesity and hyperandrogenism are the conditions that can influence many different health domains, also may affect the mental and social wellbeing components of subject’s life.

Study objective: To evaluate whether body weight status and clinical hyperandrogenism may influence social competencies and psychological gender features in adolescent girls.

Design & participants: In 104 adolescent girls clinical evaluation and hormonal profile were done, psychological gender inventory (PGI) and social competencies questionnaire (SCQ) [assessing social abilities in three aspects: Intimacy (I), Social Exposure (SE), Assertiveness (AS)] were performed. According to BMI percentile and clinical features of hyperandrogenism (hirsutism, menstrual disturbances), subjects were divided into four subgroups: G1 – 24 non-obese girls, without hyperandrogenism (mean age 16.8±0.8 years; mean gynecological age 45.0±9 mo; BMI z-score 0.1±0.9); G2 – 18 obese girls, without hyperandrogenism (mean age 16.5±1.4 years; mean gynecological age 58.5.0±22.0 mo; BMI z-score 2.2±0.5), G3 – 30 non-obese hyperandrogenic girls (mean age 17.1±0.7 yrs; mean gynecological age 50.0±8.0 mo, BMI z-score 0.6±0.8) and G4 – 32 obese girls with hyperandrogenism (mean age 16.7±0.8 yrs; mean gynecological age 47.0±16.5 mo, BMI z-score 2.3±0.6).

Results: There were no significant differences in all parts of SCQ and PGI between the study and control groups. The feminine woman type dominated in all groups, in G3 and G4 masculine woman type appeared more often than in G1 and G2 (13.3% and 12.5% vs. 4.0% and 0.0%, respectively). In G4 positive relationship between BMI z-score and SCQ (r=0.4, P=0.03) was found. In G1 the relationship was opposite (r=−0.5, P=0.03). Hirsutism correlated negatively with SCQ (r=−0.5, P=0.02), I (r=−0.5, P=0.02) and AS (r=−0.5, P=0.02) only in G1; in other groups this relationship was insignificant. In G4 higher testosterone level was associated with lower SCQ (r=−0.5, P=0.008) and AS (r=−0.5, P=0.003). In G2 testosterone concentration correlated positively with SCQ (r=0.6, P=0.01), SE (r=0.5, P=0.02) and AS (r=0.6, P=0.02).

Conclusion: In adolescent girls body weight status and clinical features of androgen excess can be associated with some aspects of social competences and psychological gender features, facilitate or disturb social and psychological subject’s functioning.