Institutional Communications
Bureau of Mines Building, Room 137
Laramie
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: (307) 766-2929
Email: cbaldwin@uwyo.edu
The American Society for Reproductive Medicine recently recognized research conducted by Rebecca Carron, an assistant professor in the University of Wyoming School of Nursing.
Carron, a nurse practitioner involved with dermatology, and her co-investigator, Ruben Alvero, a reproduction endocrinologist, received an award for their research on “Psychosocial Distress, Coping, and Health-Related Quality of Life in Adult Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS).”
“Dermatology is an entry point in the health care of women with PCOS,” Carron says. “Such women have problems with acne and hirsutism (abnormal growth of hair on face and body) due to the hormonal imbalance of the syndrome, so they seek care from a dermatologist.”
She says many of these women have been to three or four different medical offices before they visit a dermatologist and finally find out they have PCOS. She became suspicious that PCOS was the culprit in many young women’s acne problems as she began interviewing them further and found some having difficulty becoming pregnant, a big sign that PCOS may be the cause. Carron screens all young women who receive an acne evaluation for PCOS by asking some simple questions.
“This award helps to acknowledge that our research is relevant and important,” Carron says. She hopes that other nurse practitioners will become aware of this research and be on the alert for such young women.
“Family nurse practitioners as primary health care providers have an incredible opportunity to screen and diagnose PCOS in their practice,” Carron says.
Carron received bachelor’s degrees in English literature, nursing and music, and her M.S. (2006), all from UW; and a Ph.D. (2014) in nursing at the University of Colorado College of Nursing.
Institutional Communications
Bureau of Mines Building, Room 137
Laramie
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: (307) 766-2929
Email: cbaldwin@uwyo.edu