The Effect of Successful Renal Transplantation on Hormonal Status of Female Recipients

Abstract

The pituitary, thyroid, and ovarian hormone levels were measured by enzyme and fluorescence polarization immunoassays in 18 women with successful renal transplants (recipients): 10 menstruating, mean age 34.7 years, mean time after transplantation (Tx) 112.00 months, mean SCr 130.60 µmol/L; and 8 menopausal, mean age 52.7 years, mean time after Tx 61.00 months, and mean SCr 119.00 µmol/L. Five women of the menstruating group conceived 7 times and gave birth to 4 healthy infants. The findings were compared to 30 age-matched healthy subjects (controls) and to 13 women under chronic hemodialysis (hemodialyzedpatients): 2 menstruating, 24 and 36 years old, and 11 menopausal, mean age 59.4 years. Serum prolactin (PRL) showed a highly significant increase in hemodialyzed patients (p <. 0001) compared to controls. In recipients, PRL levels were significantly lower than in hemodialyzed patients, but higher than in controls (p <. 0001). LH and FSH were elevated in menstruating hemodialyzed patients (p <. 0001, p <. 02, respectively) and significantly high in menopausal hemodialyzed patients (p <. 02, p <. 01, respectively). In menstruating recipients, LH was also highly elevated (p <. 001), while FSH showed no significant difference from controls. In menopausal recipients the increase of LH was less prominent (p <. 02) but FSH was highly increased (p <. 001). T₃, T₄, and FTI were absolutely normal in recipients, while they were significantly lower than normal (p <. 0001) in hemodialyzed patients. Estradiol showed no significant difference in both groups of recipients, as well as in menopausal hemodialyzed patients. In conclusion, it seems that after successful renal Tx in females, thyroid function is absolutely restored, PEL secretion is almost normalized, gonadotropin secretion is ameliorated in menstruating women, and estradiol secretion is restored. Thus, the restoration of fertility in the menstruating group could be attributed to the normal gonadal and ameliorated gonadotropin secretion.