Study on the pathophysiology of “luteal insufficiency”
Changes in sex steroid hormone secretion and receptor levels in the endometrium of patients with “luteal insufficiency”
1991 Volume 43 Issue 1 Pages 18-27
Details
1991 Volume 43 Issue 1 Pages 18-27
Successful implantation requires a well-developed and well-functioning endometrium. Improper growth of the endometrium may be one of the causes of infertility. In this study, we measured serum estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P) levels in eighty-one infertile women and obtained endometrial tissue for histological dating. In addition, estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) were stained with an immunohistochemical method using monoclonal antibodies in twenty endometrial tissue specimens.
Seventeen patients had low P levels in the mid-luteal phase (<10 ng/ml). Sixty-four patients had normal P levels (≥10ng/ml).
Twenty-four of the latter patients (24/64) had out-of-phase endometrium. Furthermore, nuclei were positively stained for ER and PR. ER staining disappeared in 69% (9/13) of the patients with in-phase endometrium. On the other hand, all patients (7/7) with out-of-phase endometrium still had positive ER cells in the mid-luteal phase. These findings indicated that there is an abnormality of ER turnover in patients with “endometrial insufficiency”.
