Patterns of luteinizing and follicle-stimulating hormone pulsatility in menopausal women: correlation with plasma testosterone level and vasomotor instability episodes.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that subtle differences among postmenopausal women can be detected by careful analysis of plasma luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone pulses.

Study Design: Twelve postmenopausal women not receiving estrogen therapy were admitted for continuous blood withdrawal at the rate of 1 ml/min. Aliquots of 3 ml of pooled blood were collected every 3 minutes for 3 hours for the measurement of plasma luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone.

Absence of a dose-response effect of leuprolide acetate on leiomyomata uteri size.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of two different doses (3.75 mg versus 7.5 mg) of leuprolide acetate (LA, Lupron; Tap Pharmaceuticals, Deerfield, IL) on myoma size, blood loss during myomectomy, on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) signal quality, and histopathologic changes in women requiring myomectomy.

Transcervical fallopian tube catheterization and recanalization for proximal tubal obstruction.

Objective: To evaluate further the safety and efficacy of selective ostial salpingography combined with transcervical wire recanalization for the diagnosis and treatment of proximal tubal obstruction.

Design: Prospective study.

Setting: Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Department of Radiology at Harbor-University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Medical Center, a tertiary care academic institution.

Reliability of transvaginal ultrasound in detecting first trimester pregnancy abnormalities.

Objective: To evaluate the reliability of transvaginal ultrasound (US) and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) levels in detecting early abnormalities and predicting outcome of pregnancy.

Patients: One hundred thirty-two patients were studied, of which 113 had an intrauterine pregnancy and 19 had an ectopic pregnancy (EP).

Results: In 78 with singleton normal pregnancies, US revealed a normal crown-rump length, heart motion, and hCG levels between 1,000 to 107,000 mIU/mL.

Ten-year follow-up of patients with secondary amenorrhea and normal prolactin.

A group of 46 patients with secondary amenorrhea without galactorrhea or hyperprolactinemia were studied retrospectively after being clinically categorized into four groups with the use of progesterone-induced uterine bleeding and measurement of serum gonadotropins and prolactin levels. The ability to have regular spontaneous menstrual cycles and to conceive was assessed after a follow-up period of 10 years. Patients who had been classified as having hypothalamic pituitary "failure" (hypoestrogenic amenorrhea) with low levels of circulating estradiol had a greater rate of recovery of spontaneous ovulation and menses when compared with patients who had been classified as having only hypothalamic pituitary dysfunction (euestrogenic amenorrhea).

Effect of bromocriptine on sperm function in vitro and in vivo.

Vaginal bromocriptine is an effective method for the treatment of hyperprolactinemia, but it is unknown whether bromocriptine applied vaginally can interfere with sperm function. Thus, we sought to determine the effects in vitro and in vivo on sperm directly exposed to bromocriptine. Ten semen specimens from normal donors were diluted with Ham's F-10 medium and incubated with 0, 0.

Nocturnal growth hormone secretion does not affect diurnal variations in arginine and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion.

There is a diurnal variation in insulin secretion, with higher values in the morning (AM) than in the afternoon (PM). This study tested the hypothesis that nocturnal human growth hormone (hGH) secretion might be the mechanism producing this diurnal variation in insulin secretion. Six healthy normal-weight men were studied on four occasions: twice in the early morning (AM) and twice in the afternoon (PM).

Biochemical and biophysical indices of follicular development in spontaneous and stimulated ovulatory cycles.

This study was designed to evaluate the correlation between the follicular biophysical and biochemical indicators in spontaneous (N = 11) and stimulated (N = 110) ovulatory cycles. Ovulation was induced with clomiphene citrate in 14 cycles, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) in 12 cycles, and human menopausal gonadotropins in 84 cycles. Patients were studied daily, starting on day 10, until sonographic verification of ovulation.

Computed tomography versus magnetic resonance imaging for the evaluation of suspected pituitary adenomas.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare thin-section magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and high-resolution computed tomography (CT) in patients with suspected pituitary adenomas. Twenty-two patients (19 women and three men) with hyperprolactinemia (N = 16), increased growth hormone secretion (N = 2), increased corticotropin secretion (N = 1), and nonsecreting adenomas (N = 3) were studied with both contrast-enhanced, high-resolution CT scanning and thin-section MRI. Contrast-enhanced examinations consisted of contiguous 1.

Effectiveness of vaginal bromocriptine in treating women with hyperprolactinemia.

Treatment of hyperprolactinemia with oral bromocriptine has been associated with a high incidence of side effects. The authors recently demonstrated that, in normal women, the vaginal route of administration was an effective and safe alternative to oral bromocriptine. To evaluate the effectiveness of vaginal bromocriptine in treating women with hyperprolactinemia, the authors treated 15 hyperprolactinemic women with daily vaginal administration of 2.

Vaginal bromocriptine: pharmacology and effect on serum prolactin in normal women.

Oral bromocriptine treatment of hyperprolactinemia is frequently associated with gastrointestinal side effects. To assess the efficacy and safety of an alternate route of treatment, we randomly administered 2.5, 5.

Influence of norepinephrine administration upon pituitary hormone secretion in normal men.

This study has investigated the effects of 6.2, 12.5, 25, 50 and 100 ng/kg/min/60 min of NE infused to normal men.

Early detection of pregnancy with transvaginal ultrasound.

The gestational age and the serum human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) at which an intrauterine pregnancy can be detected using transvaginal ultrasonography (TVU) is not known. In this study, ten pregnant women were serially scanned with TVU from the time of initial positive pregnancy test, to determine when an intrauterine sac greater than 2 mm, fetal pole greater than 2 mm, and fetal heart motion could be detected. A gestational sac was seen 34.

Hyperparathyroidism and hypotestosteronemia of acute renal failure.

Acute and chronic renal failure are associated with a marked reduction in the serum levels of testosterone. The mechanisms underlying this abnormality are unknown. Certain data have implicated the high blood levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH) of uremia in the genesis of the hypotestosteronemia.

Follicle-stimulating hormone is the main determinant of follicular recruitment and development in ovulation induction with human menopausal gonadotropin.

The early hormonal changes that lead to follicular maturation and/or hyperstimulation in women requiring ovulation induction with either human menopausal gonadotropin or gonadotropin-releasing hormone have not been elucidated. This study was undertaken to assess the relative contribution of follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone to estradiol secretion and follicular maturation in patients receiving human menopausal gonadotropin or gonadotropin-releasing hormone. The study group consisted of 10 women (26 to 38 years of age) with secondary amenorrhea as a result of hypothalamic dysfunction who had failed to ovulate when given clomiphene citrate.

Longitudinal evaluation of the luteal phase and its transition into the follicular phase.

The precise patterns of LH, FSH, and PRL secretion and their correlation with estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P) secretion during the entire luteal phase have not been elucidated. To analyze in detail the secretory patterns of these hormones we performed 29 consecutive studies in 5 healthy, regularly menstruating women throughout their luteal phase [days 0 (ovulation), 2, 6, 10, and 14] and subsequent early follicular phase (day 2F). During each study plasma LH, FSH, PRL, E2, and P were measured at 10-min intervals for 6 h.

Monitoring techniques to predict and detect ovulation.

This study was designed to evaluate the accuracy of various methods in predicting and detecting ovulation in 14 spontaneous and 17 clomiphene citrate (CC)-induced cycles. From cycle day 11 all subjects (n = 27) were followed with daily transvaginal ultrasound; rapid measurement of serum luteinizing hormone (LH) and estradiol (E2); determination of urinary LH with First Response (Tambrands Inc., Palmer, MA) and Ovustick (Monoclonal Antibodies, Inc.

Influence of sequential doses of 5-hydroxytryptophan on prolactin release.

It is known that the administration of serotonin or its precursors induces the release of prolactin. This study was performed (1) to determine the minimal dose of 5-hydroxytryptophan that would produce a consistent and significant prolactin increase and (2) to establish the frequency of 5-hydroxytryptophan administration necessary to induce a persistent prolactin increase. Nine normal male subjects participated in 27 independent studies following pretreatment with 100 mg of carbidopa given every 8 hours for 2 days.

Pergolide and bromocriptine for the treatment of patients with hyperprolactinemia.

A prospective study of 22 women with hyperprolactinemia from various causes was performed with use of bromocriptine in nine patients and pergolide in 13 patients. The administration of 50 micrograms of pergolide followed by 100 micrograms on the second day showed significant decrements (p less than 0.01) in systolic and diastolic blood pressure in either standing or lying position.

Variability and selectivity of anterior pituitary response to dopamine agonists throughout the normal menstrual cycle.

To clarify whether there is a variation of dopamine effect throughout the normal menstrual cycle, 24 studies were performed during the follicular, periovulatory, and luteal phase in seven ovulatory women. The subjects were studied for 24 hours after receiving two different dopamine agonists, 2.5 mg of bromocriptine in one cycle and 50 micrograms of pergolide in a subsequent cycle.

The effect of laparoscopic follicular aspiration on ovarian steroidogenesis during the early preimplantation period.

Seventeen patients were studied for the first 72 hours of the luteal phase after spontaneous ovulation or follicle aspiration. Nine patients (group I) underwent follicle aspiration after clomiphene citrate (CC) administration, three women were studied after CC for ovulation induction (group II), and five spontaneous ovulating subjects served as controls (group III). Serum progesterone (P) concentrations were significantly elevated in stimulated cycles with or without follicle aspiration, compared with subjects.

Hormonal and morphologic effects of bromocriptine on normal rat pituitary and GH3 tumor cells.

Bromocriptine in concentrations up to 5 X 10(-4) mol/L was studied for any deleterious effects upon normal rat pituitary cells, as well as on the rat GH3 cell line. Normal rat pituitary glands were obtained by decapitation from 50-day-old female Wistar rats and dispersed with 0.25% trypsin.

Dynamics of human chorionic gonadotropin, prolactin, and growth hormone in serum and amniotic fluid throughout normal human pregnancy.

This study was performed to establish the dynamics of human chorionic gonadotropin, prolactin, and growth hormone throughout pregnancy in serum and amniotic fluid. Two hundred fifty healthy women at 8 to 42 weeks' gestation were studied. The highest serum human chorionic gonadotropin level was measured between weeks 8 to 12 (53,715 +/- 3574 mIU/ml, mean +/- SEM), with a decline to a mean plateau of 11,806 +/- 1250 mIU/ml from week 18.