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Plasma adenosine levels in peri-menopausal women having frequent hot flushes
Shunji Suzuki1, Tsutomu Takeuchi
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Tokyo Rinkai Hospital, Japan. czg83542@mopera.ne.jp
Background:
The effect of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) on plasma adenosine levels was investigated in climacteric women experiencing hot flushes.
Methods And Results:
Plasma adenosine levels were measured in 13 peri-menopausal women with frequent hot flushes (>5 per day) before and 3-4 months after initiating HRT. Thirteen healthy pre-menopausal, 9 peri-menopausal women with few hot flushes (<1 or 2 per day) and 10 healthy postmenopausal women were enrolled as controls. The average plasma adenosine level in the peri-menopausal women was 0.20+/-0.09 micromol/L, which was significantly higher than in the pre-menopausal (0.12+/-0.07 micromol/L, p<0.05), peri-menopausal with few hot flushes (0.10+/-0.09 micromol/L, p<0.05) and postmenopausal women (0.13+/-0.06 micromol/L, p<0.05). Both the increased adenosine level and the hot flushes were decreased by HRT (plasma adenosine: 0.13+/-0.06 micromol/L).
Conclusions:
Increased plasma adenosine in peri-menopausal women may be associated with frequent hot flushes.
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