AUTHOR=Boldis Beata Vivien , Grünberger Ilona , Helgertz Jonas , Cederström Agneta 

TITLE=Polycystic Ovary Syndrome and Labor Market Attachment: Sequence Analysis

JOURNAL=International Journal of Public Health

VOLUME=Volume 70 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.ssph-journal.org/journals/international-journal-of-public-health/articles/10.3389/ijph.2025.1607889

DOI=10.3389/ijph.2025.1607889

ISSN=1661-8564

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Objectives</title><p>Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine disorder in women of fertile age which may also affect the labor market attachment. We investigated labor market attachment trajectories among working age women diagnosed with PCOS.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>A cohort of 157,356 women born in 1975–1977 were followed annually between the ages of 30 and 39, using data from Swedish administrative registers. Multinomial logistic regression was employed to assess associations between being diagnosed with PCOS (after the age of 15) and belonging to the identified clusters of labor market attachment trajectories.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Women with PCOS spent less time in employment and were more dependent on sickness benefits during the follow-up time than those without PCOS. Five labor market attachment clusters were identified: <italic>stable employment, education into employment, labor market exclusion, continuously unstable position, long-term sickness</italic>. Compared to being in the <italic>stable employment</italic> cluster, women diagnosed with PCOS were more likely to experience <italic>long-term sickness</italic> [RRR (relative risk ratio): 1.97 (CI: 1.90–2.05)], and <italic>education into employment</italic> [RRR: 1.11 (CI: 1.07–1.15)].</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>PCOS can lead to disadvantaged labor market outcomes. Better strategies are needed to prevent economic exclusion among women diagnosed with PCOS.</p></sec>