Ovarian and adrenal steroidogenesis in a virilized patient with gonadotropin-resistant ovaries and hilus cell hyperplasia.
A 26-year-old woman with secondary amenorrhea, temporal balding, and clitoromegaly was found to have both the gonadotropin-resistant ovary syndrome and hilus cell hyperplasia. Simultaneous sampling of peripheral and ovarian venous blood revealed excess ovarian testosterone secretion to be the probable cause of the patient's virilism. The marked response of the ovary to stimulation by luteinizing hormone (LH) coupled with the lack of ovarian follicular development suggested that an isolated resistance of the ovarian follicle to follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) was present in this patient. The administration of a daily pharmacologic dose of dexamethasone for 14 days was followed by the patient's first menstrual period in 13 years, raising the possibility that autoimmunity may have been involved in this patient's ovarian resistance to FSH stimulation.
D000328:Adult; D003907:Dexamethasone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006965:Hyperplasia; D010053:Ovary / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000378:metabolism; D014770:Virilism / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*
D013739:Testosterone; D003907:Dexamethasone