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The 24-hour secretory pattern of LH and the response to LHRH in transsexual men

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Abstract

Ten separate aspects of hypothalamic and pituitary function were studied in 13 male-to-female transsexuals and compared to the results of 7 heterosexual adult men. In 4 of 5 transsexuals, the 24-hour mean serum concentration of LH, the LH pulse frequency or amplitude, or the apparent half-life of disappearance of serum LH were greater than the 95% confidence limit of normal men. The maximum concentration of LH or FSH following the administration of 100 µg LHRH, the area under the response curve of LH or FSH following LHRH, or both were significantly greater than normal in 5 of 13 male-to-female transsexuals. The response of LH following the administration of LHRH was repeated in 3 subjects during estrogen therapy, and in one there was a paradoxical increase in the response of LH. Transsexualism may be associated with a neuroendocrine defect in the hypothalamus or pituitary that is characterized by high-frequency, high-amplitude pulsatile secretion of pituitary LH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Cecil H. and Ida Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences and Departments of Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Urology, and Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, 75235, Dallas, Texas, USA

    Robert M. Boyar M.D. & James Aiman M.D.

  2. Department of Gynecology and Obstetries, The Medical College of Wisconsin, 8700 West Wisconsin Avenue, 53226, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

    James Aiman M.D.

Authors
  1. Robert M. Boyar M.D.
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  2. James Aiman M.D.
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Supported in part by NIH Grants 1-K04-HD-00153 and 5-M01-RR-00633 and by USPHS Grant AM-06912.

Deceased.

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Boyar, R.M., Aiman, J. The 24-hour secretory pattern of LH and the response to LHRH in transsexual men. Arch Sex Behav 11, 157–169 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01541981

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