[Reproductive medicine: more than the diagnosis and treatment of infertility]

The young specialty of reproductive medicine has developed tremendously in barely 30 years and has taken a prominent place in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology. In addition to the diagnosis and treatment of infertility, reproductive medicine comprises a large number of medical activities, most of which affect women in almost all phases of life, from shortly after puberty to old age. A key role is played by the pathophysiology of ovarian function and ovarian hormones. Requests for medical assistance concern: disorders of sexual development, the consequences for health in the short- and long-term of overweight and anovulation early in life, premature menopause and the need for hormone replacement, damage to the ovaries as a result of radio- or chemotherapy for cancer, the hormonal aspects of breast cancer, the hormonal aspects of sexuality and well-being, and counselling regarding contraception or menopausal symptoms and hormone replacement.