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The paper begins by considering the profession of pedagogist and then looks at the challenges faced by pedagogists in educational practice, with a focus on the activities to which pedagogists want to devote more time in conditions of change, and on the ways in which pedagogists obtain information on the results of their work in schools. The paper presents part of the findings of a study on the the views of pedagogists-educationalists in primary and secondary schools in Serbia. The aim of the research was to identify the professional activities to which pedagogists want to devote their activities in educational practice, and the ways they are informed about the results of their work at the level of the school, noting the differences related to the type of school in which pedagogists are employed. The findings of the research are indicative and suggest that the activities to which pedagogists want to devote more time at work are primarily professional development and student counselling, while the findings concerning the way in which pedagogists are informed about the results of their work point to the need for more enterprising, active and effective action by school pedagogists in educational practice which will also affect the work of pedagogists in the contemporary education system

In this paper, the author focuses on the legal solutions in Serbian succession law pertaining to a previous issue that may arise in the course of probate proceedings. The research has been conducted with the aim of providing reasoned answers to the following questions: When is there a dispute on the application of law, and when is there a dispute on facts (factual issues significantly affecting the right to inherit)? How should the legal standard of "the less probable right" be understood? What are the characteristics of probate proceedings that prevent the dispute resolution of the same quality as in civil (litigation) or administrative proceedings? Why is the dispute resolution on decisive facts assigned to another (civil) court or administrative body if the authority in charge of conducting the probate proceedings has resolved very complex previous issues beforehand? Will the civil court judge or the notary public conducting the probate proceedings be competent enough to resolve the dispute in a specific case, bearing in mind their professional qualification and authorities, particularly those of notaries public. The analysis in this paper is based on the dogmatic (legal science) method, legal history method, normative law method, and comparative law method. For the purpose of attaining a higher level of legal certainty and a more consistent observance of the principles of procedural economy and efficiency in establishing the succession law effects of one's death, the author proposes adequate changes and amendments to the non-litigious procedure rules.

Introduction: Urticaria is a disease of polyetiological origin characterized by skin manifestations (wheals, angioedema or both) and it is frequently seen in childhood. Based on its duration, urticaria can be classified into acute and chronic; and based on causative agents urticaria is divided to spontaneous and inducible. The etiological trigger factors of acute urticaria include infections, medications and food. Aim: Evaluation of etiological factors and clinical parameters of acute urticaria in childhood. Material and methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of medical documentation which included 65 patients with acute urticaria who were treated at the Pediatric Internal Diseases Clinic, Clinical Center Niš, during the period from January 2015 to December 2016. Results: In all subjects, regardless of age, infection was the most frequent factor (42.7%) that preceded the urticaria, while in 13.4% of children infection was associated with the use of medications. In children under 3 years of age, food was the most frequent trigger factor (23.5%), while in older children (above the age of 3) more frequent trigger factor which preceded the acute urticaria was the use of medication during the infection. Among the investigated patients, 63.1% of them had clinical manifestation of urticaria, 20% had angioedema, while 16.9% of patients had urticaria and angioedema at the same time. The evaluation of the laboratory parameters showed high incidence of neutrophilia (40.6%) and increased CRP values (32.5%). Conclusion: the most common trigger factors which caused acute urticaria in childhood were the upper respiratory tract infections. A high incidence of medications was detected in the group of children older than three years, while in children younger than 3 years, food was detected as the most frequent potential cause. Neutrophilia and increased CRP values were laboratory parameters associated with infections.

Modern teaching of grammar is very complex and difficult for teachers because it takes dull material make it interesting for students as well as to the ultimate outcome of the lessons students developed grammar and speech skills.One of the most difficult grammar themes is the morphology. The aim of this study was to examine the extent to which new technologies can help the teachers in this complex task. We organized a survey in a primary school in Nis and compare organizations of classes in the traditional and modern way in teaching of morphology. As an example of modern technology we used Web tools Nearpod and Formativ. By comparative method we consider both possibilities methodical modeling classes. We surveyed the students in order to hear their opinions about this. Finally, we compared the results of tests of knowledge inthis field between the experimental control department. The results convinced us of the great possibility of new teaching methodologies. Formativ and Nearpod are the educational platform by which the teacher created and shared with his students a lesson in class (via the Internet). Using these tools allowed him to activate and monitor the work of all students; to check understanding of the lessons and the acquisition of knowledge in real time.

Religion has always had a special impact on man's attitude towards animals. In this context, this paper explores the correlation between animal welfare and Orthodox Christianity, with specific reference to the position of the Serbian Orthodox Church on this issue. The research has been conducted with the aim of examining the links between animals and Orthodox Christianity, establishing whether the official position of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) promotes animal welfare, and whether its activities embody the recognition and protection of animal rights. For the purposes of this paper, the author has applied the sociological, legal-dogmatic, and historicalcritical methods. The conducted research shows that the Serbian Orthodox Church does not have an official position on animals; thus, the correlation between animal welfare and Orthodox Christianity cannot be precisely determined. Yet, due to the impact of the canons of the Holy Scriptures, it is quite certain that the Serbian Orthodox priests formally advocate for animal welfare and observance of animal rights, and officially condemn any cruel treatment against animals. On the other hand, man's love for animals must be moderate and never above man's love for God and other human beings. Orthodox Christianity does not prohibit the use of meat and fish in nutrition, nor does it consider killing animals an immoral act. Such an approach is also pertinent to Islam and Judaism, while Buddhism advocates respect for all forms of life by promoting the principle of ahimsa (non-violence), which applies to all living beings. It is clear that Orthodox Christianity does not advocate for the recognition of animals' rights to life, nor does it recognize animals as legal subjects. The twelve-year application of the Animal Welfare Act in the Republic of Serbia has shown that a number of factors hinder a better protection of animal welfare. The Serbian Orthodox Church largely contributes to such a situation by failing to promote animal welfare, protection and a more humane treatment of animals (particularly stray or abandoned animals) in its regulatory acts and social activities.

This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the association between menstrual cycle lenght and metabolic parameters in non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology, n = 250. Metabolic profiles of all participants were evaluated using anthropometric parameters (body mass index, waist circumference), parameters of dyslipidemia (total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides) and markers of insulin resistance (fasting insulin, homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance index). The associations between menstrual cycle lenght and cardiometabolic risk factors such as insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and obesity were investigated. In non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology, menstrual cycle lenght was associated with hypertriglyceridemia and insulin resistance independently of body mass index. Moreover, menstrual cycle lenght added value to body mass index in predicting hypertriglyceridemia. The optimal menstrual cycle lenght cut-off value for identifying of non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology at metabolic risk was found to be 45 days. Metabolic profile of non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology (n = 75) with menstrual cycle lenght >45 days was similar to that of hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology (n = 138) while metabolic profile of non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology with menstrual cycle lenght ≤45 days (n = 112) was similar to that of controls (n = 167). Non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology with menstrual cycle lenght >45 days had higher prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors compared to those with menstrual cycle lenght ≤45 days. Non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology are not metabolically homogeneous. Menstrual cycle lenght is an easy-to-obtain clinical parameter positively associated with the probability of unfavorable metabolic status in non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology. Menstrual cycle lenght cut-off value of 45 days was found to have the best capacity in discriminating non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology with and without metabolic derangement(s) corroborating in favor of the cardiometabolic risk factors screening and management in non-hyperandrogenic women with polycystic ovarian morphology with menstrual cycle lenght >45 days through strategies for prevention of cardiovascular disease.

Animals, like people, can cause damages. Who shall be held liable for it, on which basis, and who shall be obliged to compensate for it? The domestic Law on Contracts and Torts does not provide a decisive answer to the questions posed, and the multiannual judicial practice has treated animals as dangerous things for whose behaviour, as a rule, the owner, i.e. the holder, has been held liable according to the principle of objective liability. The Serbian Draft Civil Code, in principle, confirms the domestic jurisprudence practice. Taking as a starting point the amendments of French, Austrian, German and Swiss Civil Codes that qualitatively differently regulate the status of animals since animals are not any longer observed as things, but as sensitive beings, so the regulations referring to such property apply to them, unless they are not excluded with the regulations regulating their welfare. In the paper, we shed the light on liability for damage caused by animals exactly through the prism of the new approach in legal treatment of animals.

STUDY QUESTION: Do patient-specific features contribute to the differences between measured serum anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) concentrations and AMH values expected from the corresponding antral follicle count (AFC)? SUMMARY ANSWER: Patient-specific features contribute to the differences between measured AMH values and AMH values expected from the corresponding AFC (AMHp), potentially through their effect on follicular AMH production. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: Both patient counselling and patient management could be hampered by finding of disagreement between AFC and AMH if both are used for the prediction of ovarian response. The difference between measured AMH concentrations and AMH values expected according to the corresponding AFC cannot be entirely explained by the technical limitations of counting of antral follicles and analytical variability of the AMH assay used. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION: This retrospective study analysed medical records of 1097 IVF patients collected between March 2011 and July 2013. PARTICIPANT/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS: The study population (N = 1097) included 705 (64.3%) women with normal ovarian morphology and 392 (35.7%) women with polycystic ovarian morphology, aged 20-44 years, who underwent their first IVF cycle in a single clinical centre. AMH was measured by a routine laboratory method and predicted AMH (AMHp) values were calculated using the linear regression equation (AMHp = -4.4 + 1.5 × AFC). The absolute value of the difference between AMH and AMHp was considered to be the measure of the degree of AMH-AFC agreement. The association of the difference between AMH and AMHp with clinical and biochemical parameters was investigated in both the higher-than-predicted (HTP) group comprising patients with AMH higher than AMHp (N = 466) and the lower-than-predicted (LTP) group comprising patients with AMH lower than AMHp (N = 631). MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE: Patients in the HTP group had significantly longer menstrual cycle length and higher AMH and LH concentrations but lower AFC and FSH concentration than their counterparts in the LTP group. There was a significant association of absolute value of the difference between AMH and AMHp with age, menstrual cycle length, AFC, FSH and testosterone in both groups (P < 0.001). The difference between AMH and AMHp was exclusively correlated to LH in the HTP group (r = 0.159, P < 0.001) and to BMI in the LTP group (r = 0.231, P < 0.001), respectively. Multiple regression analysis revealed that only LH was significantly related to the difference between AMH and AMHp in the HTP group, independently from AFC. In the LTP group, BMI, menstrual cycle length, FSH and testosterone were found associated with the difference between AMH and AMHp, independently from AFC. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION: The main limitation of the study is selection bias. Data analysed in this study were collected from medical records of patients undergoing IVF treatment in a single department of human reproduction which precludes generalization of the results to women of different geographic origin, ethnicity, race and reproductive status. WIDER IMPLICATION OF THE FINDINGS: AMH higher than expected for a given AFC could suggest up-regulated AMH secretion (a typical feature of polycystic ovary syndrome) while AMH lower than expected from the corresponding AFC suggest down-regulated AMH secretion that could be seen as an early symptom of diminished ovarian reserve and premature ovarian insufficiency. In other words, when challenged against AFC, the serum AMH level is not only a quantitative but also a qualitative follicle marker, in relation with clinical and endocrine parameters. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S): No study funding was obtained for this study. The authors have no conflict of interest(s) to declare. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: Non-applicable.

STUDY QUESTION Is intrinsic dysregulation of granulosa cells (GC) and consequent increases in the per-follicle production of anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), correlated with the phenotypic presentation of women with polycystic ovaries? SUMMARY ANSWER Involvement of intrinsic GC dysregulation in oligo-anovulation associated with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is likely because among women with PCOS, those with oligo-amenorrhea have higher per-follicle AMH production than those who ovulate normally, irrespective of their androgen and/or metabolic status. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Women with PCOS have higher serum AMH level than non-PCOS women due to an increased follicle number and excessive AMH production per follicle, the latter reflecting a putative GC dysfunction that may vary between PCOS phenotypes. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION This is a retrospective analysis of data collected from 1021 women undergoing infertility evaluation from March 2011 to October 2013. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS The study included women with polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) who met the Rotterdam criteria for PCOS (n = 272), women with PCOM only (n = 168) and controls (n = 581). MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE We used serum AMH to antral follicle count (AFC) ratio (AMH/AFC) as a marker of per-follicle AMH production and checked whether this ratio was associated with the PCOS phenotype and to the menstrual, androgen and metabolic status in women with PCOS, women with PCOM only and in controls. AMH/AFC was significantly higher in oligo-amenorrheic women with PCOS than in eumenorrheic women with PCOS or PCOM (P < 0.001) but also in the latter group compared with controls (P < 0.001) regardless of androgen status. Stepwise discriminant analysis yielded a significant score for the menstrual status with a discriminant power of 26.5% (P < 0.001). This score included AFC, AMH/AFC, waist circumference and LH with partial R2 of 0.172, 0.042, 0.024 and 0.023, respectively. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION The AMH to AFC ratio as a surrogate marker for average AMH may be subject to error because follicles below the sensitivity limit of the ultrasonography used may also contribute to serum AMH concentration and secondly, AFC can be subjective. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS The higher AMH/AFC in women with PCOM only than in controls suggests that isolated PCOM may represent a PCOS-like phenotype in which an inherent dysfunction of GC exists but is too mild to affect the ovulatory process. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) No funding was obtained for this study. There are no conflicts of interest to be declared. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER Non-applicable.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women are more insulin resistant than general population. Prevalence data on insulin resistance (IR) in PCOS vary depending on population characteristics and methodology used. The objectives of this study were to investigate whether IR in PCOS is exclusively associated with body mass and to assess the prevalence of IR in lean and overweight/obese PCOS. Study included 250 consecutive women who attended a Department of Human Reproduction diagnosed as having PCOS according to the Rotterdam criteria. Control group comprised 500 healthy women referred for male factor infertility evaluation during the same period as the PCOS women. PCOS women (n = 250) were more insulin resistant than controls (n = 500) even after adjustment for age and body mass index (BMI) (P = 0.03). Using logistic regression analysis, BMI ≥ 25 kg/m(2) (OR 6.0 ; 95 % CI 3.3-11.0), PCOS (OR 2.2 ; 95 % CI 1.4-3.5) and waist circumference ≥ 80 cm (OR 2.0 ; 95 % CI 1.1- 3.8) were identified as independent determinants of IR (P < 0.001). IR was more prevalent in overweight/obese controls (n = 100) than in lean PCOS women (n = 150), 31 versus 9.3 %, but less prevalent than in overweight/obese PCOS (n = 100), 31 versus 57 %. The prevalence of IR between lean controls (5 %) and lean PCOS (9.3 %) did not significantly differ. Both PCOS- specific and obesity-related IR independently contribute to IR in PCOS. Using HOMA-IR cutoff value of 3.15 specific for Croatian women in our clinical setting, the assessed prevalence of IR in lean and overweight/obese PCOS women was 9.3 and 57 %, respectively

The author's attention is focused on the rules establishing the institution of succession in the Nomocanon of Saint Sava. Through a prism of provisions dedicated to legal, testamentary and forced succession, the author sheds light to the characteristics in regulating inheritance-law relationships in the medieval Serbia, particularly focusing her attention to the degree of applicability of individual solutions in practice. The author advocates for the return to roots, reaffirmation, and for a comprehensive study of almost completely forgotten civil society rules contained in the Nomocanon of Saint Sava.

This cross-sectional study aimed to estimate the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors in ethnically homogeneous women with different PCOS phenotypes undergoing IVF treatment. The study included 157 controls, 135 asymptomatic women with polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) and 236 women diagnosed with PCOS and phenotyped according to the Rotterdam criteria. Anthropometric measurements, transvaginal ultrasound scan and blood sampling for biochemistry analyses were performed on the same day in a single clinical center. Metabolic profiles and prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors such as obesity, dyslipidemia and insulin resistance assessed by clinical-setting specific threshold were compared among the groups. Women with PCOS A were younger, more insulin resistant and had higher body mass index and larger waist circumference than other women. PCOS C and PCOS D women were similar in metabolic profile. Likewise, there was no difference in metabolic profiles between controls and PCOM. No difference in lipid profile was found between different PCOS phenotypes. Women with PCOS A phenotype had higher prevalence of obesity, insulin resistance and hypertriglyceridemia than other PCOS phenotypes. The prevalence of insulin resistance and hypertriglyceridemia in PCOS D (30% and 23.9%) was found to be intermediate between that of PCOS C (24.5% and 18.4%) and PCOS A (47.3% and 27%). The high prevalence of hypercholesterolemia (around 50%) was common feature of all groups. In conclusion, in women with PCOS, the presence of oligomenorrhea was associated with higher prevalence of metabolic disturbances compared with the presence of hyperandrogenism in both lean and obese women with PCOS. Obesity was more prevalent in hyperandrogenic PCOS phenotypes than in non-hyperandrogenic PCOS and controls. In obese controls, asymptomatic PCOM and PCOS women, prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors was much higher than in their lean counterparts.

Baseline dehydroepiandrostendione sulphate (DHEAS) has been demonstrated to discriminate between young, expected poor responders with favourable clinical pregnancy prospects after IVF treatment and their counterparts with significantly lower pregnancy chances. This study investigated DHEAS ability to predict live birth before starting the first gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) antagonist ovarian stimulation for IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection in young women (≤37years) with low serum AMH (5.4μmol/l was 5-fold higher compared with women with DHEAS ≤5.4μmol/l (38.9% versus 7.4%, P

Objective. To investigate the endocrine and/or clinical characteristics of women with low anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) that could improve the accuracy of IVF outcome prediction based on the female age alone prior to the first GnRH antagonist IVF cycle.Methods. Medical records of 129 patients with low AMH level (Results. Clinical pregnancy rate (CPR) per initiated cycles was 11.6%. For the prediction of clinical pregnancy, DHEAS and age showed AUC-ROC of 0.726 (95%CI 0.641–0.801) and 0.662 (95%CI 0.573–0.743), respectively (). The predictive accuracy of the model combining age and DHEAS (AUC-ROC 0.796; 95%CI 0.716–0.862) was significantly higher compared to that of age alone (). In patients Conclusions. DHEAS appears to be predictive for clinical pregnancy in younger women (

There is relatively little information on the role of high density lipoprotein (HDL) oxidation in atherogenesis although there are indications that oxidation might affect atheroprotective activities of HDL. Recently we reported the study on LDL oxidation initiated and sustained by traces of the transition metal ions under conditions, which favor slow oxidation. Here we report the results of the analogous study on the oxidation of the two HDL subclasses. The oxidation process was monitored by measuring the time dependence of oxygen consumption and concentration of the spin-trapped free radicals using EPR spectroscopy. In both HDL2 and HDL3 subclasses, the dependence of the oxidation process on the copper/lipoprotein molar ratio is different from that in LDL dispersions. Comparison of the kinetic profiles of HDL2 and HDL3 oxidation revealed that under all studied experimental conditions HDL2 was more susceptible to copper-induced oxidation than HDL3.

The Konelab 20XT (Thermo Electron Oy, Finland) is a clinical chemistry analyzer for colorimetric, immunoturbidimetric and ion-selective electrode measurements. The aim of our work was to evaluate the analytical performances of the Konelab 20XT according to the European Clinical Chemistry Laboratory Standards Guidelines. A total of 30 analytes including substrates, enzymes, electrolytes and specific proteins were tested. Investigation results showed low imprecision (within-run coefficient of variation was below 3.5% and between-day coefficient of variation was less than 2.5% for most analytes at all three levels studied) and acceptable accuracy of the analyzer. No significant sample- or reagent-related carry-over was found. It was demonstrated that the analytical system operates within the claimed linearity ranges. The results compared well with those obtained by instruments routinely used in our laboratory (Olympus AU2700, Behring Nephelometer II). In general, the data on interference by hemoglobin, hyperbilirubinemia and turbidity are in accordance with known facts. However, slight hemolysis was found to interfere with the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) assay and mild lipemia affected the glucose assay. The Konelab 20XT is an easy-to-use analyzer that is suitable for routine and emergency analyses in small laboratories.

PBN trapping indicated the presence of at least two types of radicals induced in LDL upon slow oxidation, as observed with EPR spectroscopy. The EPR spectra are very similar to those of the spin probes or spin labels, which are routinely used in the studies of macromolecular systems and supramolecular assemblies. The parameters of the spectral line shapes, treated in two different theoretical models, did not provide conclusive evidence for the phase transition in the LDL particles, known to be present at about 25 °C. It is concluded that both types of trapped radicals, or at least one of them, are associated with the apolipoproteins, with the spin probe sticking into the lipid domain of phospholipids.

The microscopic probabilistic model has been introduced to explain the kinetics of very slow oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) from human plasma. The LDL oxidation, carried out in very unfavorable conditions, is assumed to be initiated by the traces of the transition-metal ions associated with the lipoprotein. The substrates for the metal-ion attack are α-tocopherol and the pre-formed lipid hydroperoxide. The theory assumes oscillation of the metal ions and α-tocopherol from the oxidized to the reduced states. In this model α-tocopherol acts as a pro-oxidant. The entire oxidation process consists of rare bursts of events in individual LDL particles. The reactions within the particles are treated in terms of probabilities of individual active species to participate in a specified reaction. The circular flow of the radical reactions could be visualized as circular flow of microscopic probabilities. The empirical, macroscopic quantities are quantitatively related with the microscopic probabilities, determined by a set of five adjustable parameters. The differential equations describing the initial radical generation rate and the rates of change of concentration of oxygen, hydroperoxide, co-antioxidant and trapped radicals in an LDL system are numerically solved in a finite difference approach.

Theoretical probabilistic kinetic model has been applied to describe the measurements of several oxidation markers as a function of time, during slow oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL). It has been demonstrated that such a process could be described as tocopherol-mediated peroxidation (TMP), initiated and sustained by the action of copper ions, present in LDL in trace amounts. In that process concentration of α-tocopherol remains essentially unaltered. Tocopherol and copper ions act as catalysts, oscillating between the oxidized and reduced states. The fitting of the theoretical model to the experimental data resulted in determination of the numerical values for the kinetic parameters. It has been found that the parameter values used for the fitting of the data collected for a number of samples from various donors differ rather little. The kinetic chain length of 1.3 (in presence of co-antioxidants) and 2.9 (in the absence of co-antioxidants) is shorter than found by others. The difference probably comes from the much lower concentration of copper ions in our systems (about 0.1 ion per LDL particle).

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) in solution, supplemented with EDTA, is spontaneously oxidized at physiological temperature. In closed systems, three distinct phases of oxidation are present. In the lag period no change of any of the usually measured 'markers' of oxidation have been detected. In the second phase oxygen is consumed and subsequently the level of lipid hydroperoxides is increased. In the third phase, after consumption of oxygen, hydroperoxides decrease in concentration and the apoprotein-associated free radicals are formed. In the entire process alpha-tocopherol is conserved. The participation and preservation of alpha-tocopherol in the process is interpreted in terms of the tocopherol-mediated peroxidation. In the latter two phases alpha-tocopherol oscillates between the oxidized and reduced states.

Study question Can cluster analysis can be used to identify a homogeneous subpopulation of women with polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) within a very large population of control women in a non-subjective way? Summary answer Identification and exclusion of the cluster corresponding to women with PCOM from controls improved the diagnostic power of serum anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) level and follicle number per ovary (FNPO) in discriminating between women with or without polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). What is known already There is disagreement as to whether women with PCOM should be excluded from the control population when establishing FNPO and AMH diagnostic thresholds for the definition of PCOS and how to identify such women. It has been demonstrated that cluster analysis can detect women with PCOM within the control population through a set of classifying variables among which the most relevant was AMH. The adequacy of this approach has not been confirmed in other clinical settings. Study design, size, duration This was a retrospective study using clinical and laboratory data derived from the computerized database. The data were collected from March 2011 to May 2013. Participants/materials, setting, methods The study included 893 patients referred for routine infertility evaluation and treatment. The patients were divided into three groups: (i) the control group (n = 621) included women with regular menstrual cycles and no signs of hyperandrogenism (HA), (ii) the full-blown PCOS group (n = 95) consisted of women who were diagnosed as having PCOS based on the presence of both HA and oligo/amenorrhoea (OA), (iii) the mild PCOS group included women with only two items of the Rotterdam classification, i.e. PCOM at ultrasonography according to the FNPO threshold of 12 or more and either OA (n = 110) or HA (n = 67). Main results and the role of chance After exclusion of women with PCOM from the controls, the AMH threshold of 28 pmol/l with specificity 97.5% and sensitivity 84.2% [area under the curve (AUC) 0.948 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.915-0.982)] and FNPO threshold of 12 with specificity 92.5% and sensitivity 83.2% [AUC 0.940 (95% CI 0.909-0.971)] for identifying PCOS were derived from the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. The AMH threshold of 28 pmol/l had the same specificity for discriminating the mild and the full-blown PCOS phenotypes from controls. Limitations, reasons for caution There was no selection bias other than being evaluated for infertility treatment, however, this could also be considered as a limitation of the study as these women may not necessarily be a representative sample of the general population. The study demonstrated that serum AMH has intrinsically a very high potency to detect women with PCOM within a control group. However, the AMH threshold is specific for this method and clinical setting. Wider implications of the findings AMH threshold value for the definition of PCOM is method specific and cannot be universally applied. This study confirmed the results of previous studies that cluster analysis can identify women with PCOM within the very large control population without using a predefined diagnostic threshold for FNPO, and that AMH can detect women with PCOM with a high specificity. The exclusion of PCOM women from the controls by using a cluster analysis should be considered when establishing reference intervals and decision threshold values for various parameters used to characterize PCOS. Study funding/competing interests The authors have no funding/competing interest(s) to declare.