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The Medical and Surgical Practice of NaProTECHNOLOGY, 307-334, 2004

Chapter 26: Isomolecular Hormones vs Heteromolecular Artimones

Thomas W Hilgers

Author affiliations
  • Pope Paul VI Institute for the Study of Human Reproduction, Omaha, Nebraska. ROR
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Abstract

Hilgers distinguishes isomolecular hormones -- molecules structurally identical to endogenous estradiol and progesterone -- from heteromolecular artimones, his term for synthetic analogues such as medroxyprogesterone acetate, norethindrone, and ethinyl estradiol, which differ in receptor binding, metabolic pathways, and systemic effects. NaProTECHNOLOGY restricts hormone therapy to isomolecular compounds administered in cycle-synchronized, physiologic doses because artimones suppress the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis, mask underlying pathology, and produce non-physiologic metabolite profiles incompatible with a restorative reproductive medicine approach.

Topics

NaProTECHNOLOGY terminology: isomolecular hormones vs heteromolecular artimonesCardiovascular hormone therapy: PEPI, HERS, ERA trial reanalysisProgesterone receptor isoforms PR-A and PR-B: opposing transcriptional rolesBioidentical progesterone: breast tissue, brain, and bone effectsSteroid biochemistry: progesterone and estrogen biosynthesis and metabolismVaginal progesterone absorption: first uterine pass effect
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Cite this article

Hilgers, T. W. (2004). Chapter 26: Isomolecular Hormones vs Heteromolecular Artimones. The Medical and Surgical Practice of NaProTECHNOLOGY, 307-334.

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