Women With Turner Syndrome Are Both Estrogen and Androgen Deficient: The Impact of Hormone Replacement Therapy

Mette Hansen Viuff*, Jesper Just*, Sara Brun, Tine Vrist Dam, Mette Hansen, Lars Melgaard, David M Hougaard, Michael Lappe, Claus Højbjerg Gravholt

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaperJournal articleResearchpeer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Context: Women with Turner syndrome (TS) suffer from hypergonadotropic hypogonadism, causing a deficit in gonadal hormone secretion. As a consequence, these women are treated with estrogen from the age of 12 years, and later in combination with progesterone. However, androgens have been given less attention. Objective: To assess sex hormone levels in women with TS, both those treated and those nontreated with hormone replacement therapy (HRT), and investigate the impact of HRT on sex hormone levels. Methods: At Aarhus University Hospital, 99 women with TS were followed 3 times from August 2003 to February 2010. Seventeen were lost during follow-up. Control group 1 consisted of 68 healthy age-matched control women seen once during this period. Control group 2 consisted of 28 young, eumenorrheic women sampled 9 times throughout the same menstrual cycle. Serum concentrations of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), 17β-estradiol, estrone sulfate, DHEAS, testosterone, free androgen index, androstenedione, 17-OH progesterone, and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) were analyzed. Results: All androgens, 17-OH progesterone, and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) were 30% to 50% lower in TS compared with controls (P < 0.01). FSH, LH, and estrone sulfate were more than doubled in women with TS compared with controls (P < 0.02). Using principal component analysis, we describe a positive correlation between women with TS receiving HRT, elevated levels of SHBG, and decreased levels of androgens. Conclusion: The sex hormone profile in TS reveals a picture of androgen deficiency, aggravated further by HRT. Conventional HRT does not normalize estradiol levels in TS.

Original languageEnglish
JournalThe Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism
Volume107
Issue7
Pages (from-to)1983-1993
Number of pages11
ISSN0021-972X
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jul 2022

Keywords

  • Androgens/deficiency
  • Estradiol
  • Estrogens/deficiency
  • Female
  • Follicle Stimulating Hormone
  • Gonadal Steroid Hormones/therapeutic use
  • Hormone Replacement Therapy
  • Humans
  • Luteinizing Hormone
  • Progesterone/therapeutic use
  • Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin/analysis
  • Sex hormones
  • Testosterone
  • Turner Syndrome/drug therapy

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