This review will address the current understanding of the relationship between prolactin (PRL) and endometriosis-associated infertility. Although the exact mechanisms of action of hyperprolactinemia in patients with endometriosis-associated infertility have not been clearly established, this report reviews results from relevant studies in the literature. These include serum PRL levels in endometriosis-associated infertility, PRL receptors in ectopic endometriotic tissues, basal PRL levels after TSH and Danazol (isoxazolic derivative of the synthetic steroid 5alpha-ethinyl-testosterone) therapy, peritoneal fluid and nocturnal serum PRL levels in endometriosis, infertility, and luteal phase PRL concentrations in patients with endometriosis. TARGET AUDIENCE: Obstetricians & Gynecologists, Family Physicians. LEARNING
Objectives
After completion of this article, the reader should be able to explain the relationship between prolactinand endometriosis-associated infertility, relate endometriosis with infertility, and summarize two ways in which prolactin and endometriosis may be linked in the pathophysiology of infertility.
PMID 19624865 19624865 DOI 10.1097/OGX.0b013e3181ab5479 10.1097/OGX.0b013e3181ab5479
Cite this article
Wang, H., Gorpudolo, N., & Behr, B. (2009). The role of prolactin- and endometriosis-associated infertility. Obstetrical & gynecological survey, 64(8), 542-547. https://doi.org/10.1097/OGX.0b013e3181ab5479
Wang H, Gorpudolo N, Behr B. The role of prolactin- and endometriosis-associated infertility. Obstet Gynecol Surv. 2009;64(8):542-547. doi:10.1097/OGX.0b013e3181ab5479
Wang, Hongbo, et al. "The role of prolactin- and endometriosis-associated infertility." Obstetrical & gynecological survey, vol. 64, no. 8, 2009, pp. 542-547.
Gelbaya TA et al., 2014·Obstetrical & gynecological survey
The diagnosis of unexplained infertility can be made only after excluding common causes of infertility using standard fertility investigations,which include semen analysis, assessment of ovulation, and tubal patency test. These tests have been selected as they have definitive correlation with pregnancy. It is estimated that a standard fertility evaluation will fail to identify an abnormality in approximately 15% to 30% of infertile couples. The reported incidence of such unexplained infertility varies according to the age and selection criteria in the study population. We conducted a review of the literature via MEDLINE. Articles were limited to English-language, human studies published between 1950 and 2013. Since first coined more than 50 years ago, the term unexplained infertility has been a subject of debate. Although additional investigations are reported to explain or define other causes of infertility, these have high false-positive results and therefore cannot be recommended for routine clinical practice. Couples with unexplained infertility might be reassured that even after 12 months of unsuccessful attempts, 50% will conceive in the following 12 months and another 12% in the year after.
Thyroid disease in general, and hypothyroidism in particular, are very common in women. In the USA, the most common cause of primary thyroid deficiency is on an autoimmune basis due to lymphocytic (Hashimoto) thyroiditis. Because there are thyroid hormone receptors in virtually every tissue of the body, the manifestations of hypothyroidism are varied, but problems with abnormal menses, conception, fertility, and pregnancy can be especially troubling in young women. The single most important diagnostic test is measurement of serum thyrotropin (TSH). The overwhelming majority of patients with hypothyroidism are treated with a single daily dose of synthetic levothyroxine with the goal of therapy being restoration of a normal metabolic state with return of the TSH level down to the range of 0.5 to 1.5 mlU/L. "Subclinical" hypothyroidism refers to those patients with early or mild thyroid hypofunction manifested as slight elevations of thyrotropin (approximately 4-10 mlU/L) although serum thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) levels are within their reference ranges. The entity is somewhat controversial in regard to its consequences if left untreated, and whether or not we should be screening patients, at least susceptible populations, for the condition. Reports indicate an association between subclinical hypothyroidism and poor outcomes of pregnancy, as well as dyslipidemias, atherogenesis, and increased mortality in the long term. We believe these consequences are sufficiently compelling to warrant screening and treatment with levothyroxine when found to halt progression to overt hypothyroidism, and improve symptoms, pregnancy outcomes, lipid abnormalities, and cardiovascular function. Obstetricians & Gynecologists, Family Physicians. After completion of this article, the reader should be able to recall that hypothyroidism is a common disease in women, has many protean manifestations, and can be successfully diagnosed and treated; explain that the condition of subclinical hypothyroidism can be diagnosed and if treated can prevent many untoward complications; and state that there should be heightened awareness of the disease so that proper screening tests can be performed.
PregnancyTocolytic TherapyBeta-Mimetic AgentsOff-Label Use in Pregnancy
beta-mimetics have been prescribed by physicians to arrest or prevent premature labor for more than 20 years. Although not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for tocolytic use, terbutaline sulfate has been the most widely prescribed beta-mimetic in the United States. Recently, the role of terbutaline in the treatment and prevention of preterm labor has been questioned by the FDA. Because the off-label use of drugs is a formally accepted practice in medicine when scientific studies support such use, we reviewed the currently available clinical literature on terbutaline use intravenous, oral, and subcutaneous via infusion pump. This review describes the clinical evidence that supports the safe and effective use of terbutaline as a tocolytic agent in certain patient populations. Practicing physicians should continue to have unrestricted use of terbutaline for tocolysis as one of the few remaining therapeutic options remaining in the fight against preterm birth.
Published studies relating to the usefulness of diagnostic and operative laparoscopy in women with chronic pelvic pain (CPP) were reviewed. This revealed that approximately 40 per cent of all laparoscopies were done for CPP. However, the definition of CPP was found to be nebulous and inconsistent, and that muddled definitive conclusions about patient diagnoses and treatments. The following nonmenstrual pain of 3 or more months duration that localizes to the anatomic pelvis and is severe enough to cause functional disability and require medical or surgical treatment. A survey of published reports showed laparoscopically diagnosable abnormalities in 61 per cent of patients, compared with abnormalities in 28 per cent of women without CPP. Studies in adolescents were also reviewed and showed that adolescents with CPP also had significant laparoscopically diagnosed abnormalities, with 78 per cent showing some pathology, especially endometriosis (40 per cent). Endometriosis, pelvic adhesions, chronic pelvic inflammatory disease, and ovarian cysts were the diagnoses most commonly made via laparoscopy in CPP patients. The potential roles of each of these abnormalities in CPP were discussed, as well as the results of laparoscopic treatment of each disease. Laparoscopy was also found to have a limited role in women with CPP after hysterectomy or bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, with usefulness in diagnosing and treating adhesions and residual ovary syndrome, although its role in ovarian remnant syndrome was uncertain. Overall, the data showed that less than 50 per cent of women with CPP were helped by diagnostic and operative laparoscopy, stressing the need for both physicians and patients to recognize that laparoscopy is neither the ultimate evaluation nor the panacea for CPP.