Pharmacodynamics of aqueous leuprolide acetate stimulation testing in girls: correlation between clinical diagnosis and time of peak luteinizing hormone level.

We assessed the pharmacodynamics of a 3-hour leuprolide stimulation test in 11 girls with precocious puberty to determine an optimal single sampling time. Luteinizing hormone level following leuprolide stimulation was near maximum by 30 minutes in girls with central precocious puberty, whereas it continued to rise slowly in girls with nonprogressive puberty.

Sequential comparisons of one-month and three-month depot leuprolide regimens in central precocious puberty.

BACKGROUND: Dosing of monthly depot leuprolide (DL) in central precocious puberty (CPP) varies considerably. U.S. practitioners use 7.5-15 mg, in contrast with the international standard of 3.75 mg. Pubertal suppression using the newer 3-month DL also has been reported from Europe. To date there have been no direct comparisons of these different DL doses. OBJECTIVES: In an open 12-month protocol, we tested the efficacy of three DL doses (7.5 mg- and 3.75 mg-1 month and 11.25 mg-3 month) given sequentially to subjects treated for CPP. Primary outcome measures were stimulated gonadotropin (Gn) levels at 12-wk intervals. The null hypothesis was no difference among doses. METHODS: Both existing and new patients with CPP received our standard therapy (DL 7.5 mg every 4 wk) for a minimum of 24 wk. In subjects with DL-stimulated LH 2 IU/liter or less, the dose was changed to 3.75 mg every 4 wk and evaluated 12 wk later. Subjects who met LH criteria (<4.5 IU/liter) on 3.75 mg then received a single dose of 11.25 mg-3 month and were reevaluated 12 wk later. Serum LH/FSH and sex steroids were obtained 40 min after DL injection. RESULTS: Thirty subjects were enrolled (20 naive; 24 girls, 6 boys), and 21 were evaluated on all three DL doses. DL-stimulated LH levels (mean +/- sd) were 1.30 +/- 0.74, 1.73 +/- 0.99, and 2.13 +/- 1.41 on 7.5 mg, 3.75 mg, and 11.25 mg-3 month, respectively (7.5 vs. 3.75 mg, P = 0.019; 7.5 mg vs. 11.25 mg-3 month, P = 0.004, Wilcoxon ranked sign test). Mean FSH levels were 2.86 +/- 1.91, 3.91 +/- 1.98, and 3.96 +/- 1.34, respectively (7.5 vs. 3.75 mg, P = 0.017; 7.5 mg vs. 11.25 mg-3 month, P = 0.020). No differences were detected in mean sex steroid levels. CONCLUSIONS: Stimulated LH and FSH levels were significantly higher during therapy with both the 3.75 mg and 11.25 mg-3 month depot leuprolide doses, compared with 7.5 mg, contradicting the null hypothesis of no difference. These data suggest that low-dose 1- and 3-month DL preparations are associated with persistently greater gonadal stimulation in most CPP patients, but the LH/FSH results were not corroborated by differences in sex steroid levels. Whether various DL doses lead to long-term therapeutic differences remains to be determined.

A randomized trial of transdermal and oral estrogen therapy in adolescent girls with hypogonadism.

BACKGROUND: Adolescent females with ovarian failure require estrogen therapy for induction of puberty and other important physiologic effects. Currently, health care providers have varying practices without evidence-based standards, thus investigating potential differences between oral and transdermal preparations is essential. The purpose of this study was to compare the differential effects of treatment with oral conjugated equine estrogen (OCEE), oral 17ß estradiol (OBE), or transdermal 17ß estradiol (TBE) on biochemical profiles and feminization in girls with ovarian failure. STUDY DESIGN: 20 prepubertal adolescent females with ovarian failure, ages 12-18 years, were randomized to OCEE (n = 8), OBE (n = 7), or TBE (n = 5) for 24 months. Estrogen replacement was initiated at a low dose (0.15 mg OCEE, 0.25 mg OBE, or 0.0125 mg TBE) and doubled every 6 months to a maximum dose of 0.625 mg/d OCEE, 1 mg/d OBE, or 0.05 mg/d TBE. At 18 months, micronized progesterone was added to induce menstrual cycles. Biochemical markers including sex hormones, inflammatory markers, liver enzymes, coagulation factors, and lipids were obtained at baseline and 6 month intervals. Differences in levels of treatment parameters between the groups were evaluated with one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The effect of progesterone on biochemical markers was evaluated with the paired t-test. RESULTS: Mean (±SE) estradiol levels at maximum estrogen dose (18 months) were higher in the TBE group (53 ± 19 pg/mL) compared to OCEE (14 ± 5 pg/mL) and OBE (12 ± 5 pg/mL) (p ≤ 0.01). The TBE and OBE groups had more effective feminization (100% Tanner 3 breast stage at 18 months). There were no statistical differences in other biochemical markers between treatment groups at 18 months or after the introduction of progesterone. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment with transdermal 17ß estradiol resulted in higher estradiol levels and more effective feminization compared to oral conjugated equine estrogen but did not result in an otherwise different biochemical profile in this limited number of heterogeneous patients. OBE and TBE provide safe and effective alternatives to OCEE to induce puberty in girls, but larger prospective randomized trials are required. CLINICAL TRIALS IDENTIFIER: NCT01023178.