Research
Hormonal
Healthcare professionals should assess biochemical hyperandrogenism using validated tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for testosterone, avoiding direct immunoassays due to their limited accuracy.
When getting blood work for PCOS, ensure your doctor orders testosterone testing via 'tandem mass spectrometry' (LC-MS/MS). This is the gold standard for accuracy. Avoid standard immunoassays if possible.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Laboratories should use validated, highly accurate tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) assays for measuring total testosterone... Laboratories should use LC-MS/MS assays over direct immunoassays... which have limited accuracy and demonstrate poor sensitivity and precision for diagnosing hyperandrogenism in PCOS.
Why this rating
Categorized as 'Evidence Based Recommendation' with 'Moderate' evidence quality.
Source
Recommendations from the 2023 International Evidence-based Guideline for the Assessment and Management of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Helena Teede et al. · Fertility and Sterility · 2023
DOI 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2023.07.025
clinical_guidelineCited 321×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Women with PCOS should be assessed for cardiovascular disease risk factors, including lipid profiles and blood pressure, regardless of age or BMI, due to increased risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality.Moderate
- Serum Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) can be used as an alternative to ultrasound for defining Polycystic Ovarian Morphology (PCOM) in adults, but should not be used as a single test or in adolescents.Moderate
Related findings · Hormonal
- Initial treatment for type 2 diabetes should be a combination of metformin and either an SGLT-2 inhibitor or a GLP-1 receptor agonist to achieve cardiorenal protection, rather than monotherapy or older agents like sulfonylureas.Strong
- For patients with specific monogenic obesity syndromes (leptin deficiency, POMC/PCSK1/LEPR mutations), targeted pharmacotherapy (recombinant leptin or setmelanotide) is highly effective and should be prioritized, unlike in polygenic obesity.Strong
- Continued weekly administration of 2.4 mg subcutaneous semaglutide prevents weight regain and promotes further weight loss in adults with overweight or obesity, whereas switching to placebo results in significant weight regain.Strong
This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →