The Effect of Unkei-to on Pituitary Gonadotropin Secretion and Ovulation in Anovulatory Cycles of Young Women

Abstract

Unkei-to (TJ-106) induced significant increases of plasma follicle stimulating hormone level in the first grade ( P < 0.05), second grade amenorrhea without weight loss ( P < 0.05), and weight loss related to second grade amenorrhea (P < 0.01) in eight weeks of treatment, respectively. Plasma estradiol level significantly increased 1.8 times in 4 week treatment with Unkei-to in first grade amenorrhea ( P < 0.01). In second grade amenorrhea without weight loss and weight loss related second grade amenorrhea, plasma estradiol level significantly increased 2.9 times ( P < 0.01) and 1.7 times ( P < 0.05) in 8 weeks treatment, respectively. On the other hand, the patterns of pulsatile secretion of follicle stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone remarkably improved by the treatment with Unkei-to. In the patients with second grade amenorrhea, follicles stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone pulses appeared in 3 out of 13 (23.1%) and 6 out of 13 (46.2%) with the treatment of Unkei-to, respectively in 85% of whom no pulses has been observed before the treatment. Ovulation occurred in 62.2% (23/37), 26.6% (4/15), and 21.7% (5/23) of the patients with first grade, second grade amenorrhea without weight loss, and weight loss related second grade amenorrhea by the treatment with Unkei-to, respectively. These results indicate that Unkei-to is effective on improvement of gonadotropin pulsatile secretion in the treatment of anovulatory women. This suggests that Unkei-to may enhance the pituitary response to Gn-RH or improvement of the pulsatile secretion of Gn-RH, inducing normalization of diencephalon-pituitary-ovarian endocrine system in the anovulatory patients.