title: The relationship between sex hormone profiles and symptoms of schizophrenia in men.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Recent studies have shown that sex hormones play a role in the development of schizophrenia and the severity of disease symptoms. However, study results have been inconsistent. This study compares the relationship between severity of disease symptoms and levels of estradiol, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA-S, prolactin and cortisol in male schizophrenia patients and a matched group of healthy controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study sample included 38 men diagnosed with schizophrenia according to DSM-IV TR criteria, and matched by age with 38 healthy controls. All subjects were between 18 and 55years old, 22 of them had been treated with olanzapine and 16 with quetiapine. Their symptom severity was evaluated by administering the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS) and Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS). Hormone levels for schizophrenia patients and healthy controls were evaluated using a chemiluminescence immunoassay method. The hormone profiles of schizophrenia patients and healthy controls were compared statistically. We examined the relationship between subjects' and controls' hormone levels and their scores on the SANS and SAPS scales.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This study found statistically significant elevated levels of serum DHEA-S, cortisol, and prolactin (p=0.012, p=0.009, and p=0.021 respectively), in schizophrenia patients as compared to a control group. Subjects' serum estradiol and progesterone levels (p=0.005 and p<0.001 respectively), were significantly lower than controls' levels. There was a positive correlation between subjects' SANS scores, estradiol (p=0.001) and progesterone levels (p=0.027). No relationship was found between subjects' hormone levels and their SAPS scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There may be a relationship between progesterone, estradiol, cortisol and DHEA-S, and the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. These hormones can be used as biological markers for the disorder of schizophrenia. More studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm these findings.
authors.affiliation: Psychiatry Department, Dışkapı Yıldırım Beyazıt Teaching and Research Hospital, İrfan Baştuğ cad. no.12 Dışkapı-Altındağ, Ankara 06110, Turkey. Electronic address: dr_sdbulut@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Süheyla
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Doğan Bulut
authors.affiliation: Psychiatry Department, Yenimahalle Teaching and Research Hospital, Yeni Batı mah. 2026 cad. 2367 sok. no.4 Batıkent, Ankara 06370, Turkey. Electronic address: dr_sbulut@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Serdar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bulut
authors.affiliation: Psychiatry Department, Dışkapı Yıldırım Beyazıt Teaching and Research Hospital, İrfan Baştuğ cad. no.12 Dışkapı-Altındağ, Ankara 06110, Turkey. Electronic address: olgaguriz@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Güriz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011388:Prolactin; D012016:Reference Values; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D013739:Testosterone; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D013739:Testosterone; D011388:Prolactin; D006854:Hydrocortisone