Complications of Pregnancy

The primary endpoint in reproductive medicine should be the healthy mother and offspring, and all other endpoints should be considered as surrogates. The infertile woman with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a patient at high risk for adverse pregnancy and perinatal outcomes. In fact, multiple gestation, specific clinical and biochemical characteristics and comorbidities related to PCOS and the use of infertility treatments and biological manipulations can be all crucial factors. Infertility itself is considered a risk factor for obstetric complications, creating an inherent bias in studies of fertility treatment. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to precisely estimate the amount of that risk due to a lack of high-quality data and to heterogeneity of the studied populations, often mixing assisted reproduction technologies and spontaneous conceptions. The current chapter will summarise the current knowledge regarding pregnancy complications in women with PCOS and its potential pathophysiology.