Association between Body-Image Satisfaction and Anxiety, Depressive Symptoms among Women with PCOS: The Mediating Role of Emotion Regulation Strategies

Abstract

Anxiety and depressive symptoms are prevalent in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and there is a great need for culturally relevant interventions to improve anxiety and depressive symptoms in women with PCOS. The current study aimed to analyze the factors influencing body-image satisfaction, anxiety, and depressive symptoms in Chinese women with PCOS. It also aimed to clarify the association between body-image satisfaction and anxiety and depressive symptoms in women with PCOS, and whether this association was mediated by cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression. A total of 477 women with PCOS were recruited from the Department of Gynecology and Reproductive Medicine Center of one university-affiliated tertiary hospital in China. They completed the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, the Body Image States Scale, and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. The study found body-image satisfaction showed significant associations with anxiety and depressive symptoms. This association was mediated by cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression. The findings of this study offer new insights into the relationship between body image and anxiety and depressive symptoms in women with PCOS. They also emphasize the potential value of promoting body-image satisfaction and enhancing cognitive reappraisal abilities to improve the mental health of women with PCOS.

Keywords:

• Polycystic ovary syndrome
• anxiety symptoms
• depressive symptoms
• cognitive reappraisal
• expressive suppression

Acknowledgments

We frankly thank all participants involved in the survey and other staff members on the scene.

Funding statement

This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of Central South University (grant number: 2022ZZTS0251); Hunan Provincial Innovation Foundation for Postgraduate (grant number: CX20220333).

Authorship statement

All the authors contributed to this article. JL and GPW designed the study. XYL, GPW, and JL participated in gathering data and conducted data analysis. XYL and GPW prepared and interpreted the results. GPW and JL drafted the manuscript. All coauthors edited and reviewed the manuscript and approved the final version. All listed authors meet the authorship criteria and all authors are in agreement with the content of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this article.

Author notes

Guangpeng Wang is a doctoral student at the Xiangya Nursing College of Central South University, with research interests in geriatric nursing, evidence-based nursing, and reproductive health nursing.

Xueyan Liu is a doctoral student at the Nursing College of Shandong University, focusing on geriatric nursing and obstetric and gynecological nursing.

Jun Lei is a professor at Xiangya Third Hospital of Central South University, primarily researching obstetric and gynecological nursing and reproductive health nursing.