[Clinical implications of present knowledge respecting neuropharmacologic control of antipituitary hormones]

The secretion of the pituitary hormones is controlled by hypothalamic hormones which are synthesized by neurosecreting cells whose activity is modulated by different neurotransmitters such as dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin. Centrally acting drugs (antiparkinson, antipsychotic, antidepressive and hypotensive agents) interfere with the activity of the neurotransmitters and may thus influence the secretion of hypothalamic and pituitary hormones. The action of different psychotropic drugs on the secretion of hormones of the anterior pituitary gland in man is reviewed, with particular emphasis on: 1. the role of the neurotransmitters on the secretion of the hormones under physiological and pathological conditions (endocrinopathies, neurological and psychiatric diseases); 2. the clinical importance of the secondary endocrinological effects these drugs may elicit; 3. the efficacy of these drugs as therapeutic and diagnostic agents in endocrinopathies.