title: Hormonal therapy of cryptorchidism. A randomized, double-blind study comparing human chorionic gonadotropin and gonadotropin-releasing hormone.
abstract: We conducted a randomized, double-blind study comparing intranasal gonadotropin-releasing hormone (1.2 mg per day for 28 days) with parenteral human chorionic gonadotropin (3300 IU per week for four weeks) in the treatment of cryptorchidism in 33 boys one to five years old (29 with unilateral and 4 with bilateral cryptorchidism). Testicular descent into the scrotum occurred in 3 of the 16 patients (19 percent) treated with gonadotropin-releasing hormone and in 1 of the 17 (6 percent) treated with human chorionic gonadotropin (P = 0.23). The mean luteinizing hormone and testosterone levels were similar in both groups before treatment. During treatment, the testosterone levels were significantly increased in both groups, but higher levels occurred in the group treated with human chorionic gonadotropin (P less than 0.05). In a parallel (but uncontrolled) study of five boys with retractile testes (defined as a nonscrotal testis that could be manipulated into the bottom of the scrotum) who were originally excluded from the main protocol but were treated with the same regimen of human chorionic gonadotropin, descent into the scrotum occurred in all patients. We conclude that hormonal therapy with either gonadotropin-releasing hormone or human chorionic gonadotropin is, in most cases, ineffective in promoting testicular descent of true cryptorchid testes. However, short-term treatment with human chorionic gonadotropin is very effective in producing descent of retractile testes. These results suggest that the wide discrepancies in apparent efficacy in previous trials of hormonal therapy of cryptorchidism may have been due to inclusion in those studies of various proportions of patients with retractile testes.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rajfer
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Handelsman
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Swerdloff
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hurwitz
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kaplan
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vandergast
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Ehrlich
mesh_terms: D000281:Administration, Intranasal; D002675:Child, Preschool; D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003456:Cryptorchidism / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007263:Infusions, Parenteral; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D010906:Pituitary Hormone-Releasing Hormones / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011897:Random Allocation; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D006063:Chorionic Gonadotropin; D010906:Pituitary Hormone-Releasing Hormones; D013739:Testosterone; D007986:Luteinizing Hormone