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Published on: July 4, 2018
Luteinizing hormone pulse characteristics in depressed women
W H Meller1, K M Zander, R D Crosby
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota Hospital, Minneapolis 55455-0392, USA.
Objective:
Luteinizing hormone (LH) pulse characteristics in depressed and normal women were compared to determine whether hypothalamic dysregulation in depression extends to the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis.
Method:
The subjects were 10 depressed and 13 normal comparison women admitted to a clinical research center. For each woman, an intravenous line was started and blood was withdrawn every 10 minutes for 8 hours. Blood samples were assayed for LH and LH pulse characteristics determined by using the computerized cluster algorithm of Veldhuis and Johnson.
Results:
The depressed women differed significantly from the comparison women in LH pulse amplitude, rhythmicity, and area under the curve.
Conclusions:
Major depressive disorder is associated with abnormal regulation of luteinizing hormone. Gonadotropin regulation may provide a hormonal link between major depressive disorder and impaired fertility.
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