Leptin injection may be useful in amenorrhoea
Injection of recombinant human leptin has successfully treated hypothalamic amenorrhoea in a recent, small US study.
Hypothalamic amenorrhoea occurs typically in athletes or underweight
women. Leptin is the hormone thought to be linked to the suppression
of reproductive function in such women in response to low energy stores.
Researchers from Harvard Medical School studied eight women with hypothalamic
amenorrhoea for one month before and three months after treatment with
recombinant human leptin. The women self-administered the subcutaneous
injection at a dose of 0.08mg/kg/day: 40 per cent of the dose was given
at 8am and 60 per cent at 8pm to mimic normal diurnal leptin levels.
Five of the eight subjects, whose periods had stopped a mean of five
years beforehand, went on to start menstruating. In three of these women
ovulation occurred and, in the other two, preovulatory follicles developed.
Leptin administration increased the levels of reproductive, thyroid and
growth hormones without apparent adverse effects. The authors of the
study say that the current treatment of hypothalamic amenorrhoea, oestrogen,
may have side effects and does not address underlying infertility. They
add that further studies are warranted to determine the safety and efficacy
of this agent (New England Journal of Medicine 2004;351:987). |
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