PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

L Aravena

Publications and source records attributed to L Aravena.

13 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2000

[Treatment of hirsutism with spironolactone and with spironolactone plus dexamethasone].

BACKGROUND: Spironolactone has an anti androgenic effect, inhibiting the binding of androgens to their receptor. This antagonistic effect is the basis for the use of spironolactone in the treatment of hirsutism. AIM: To study the effectiveness and safety of spironolactone in the treatment of hirsute women and of the association of spironolactone plus dexamethasone in the treatment of hirsutism with glucocorticoid sensitive hyperandrogenism. PATIENTS AND METHOD: Sixteen women (group 1) with peripheral hirsutism (defined as those with normal androgens levels, normal menstrual cycles and ovulation) and 24 women (group 2) with glucocorticoid sensitive hyperandrogenic hirsutism were studied. Group 1 was treated with spironolactone 50 mg hid and group 2 with same spironolactone dose plus dexamethasone 0.5 mg at 23 h during one month and 0.25 mg thereafter. Patients were followed during one year. RESULTS: After one year of treatment, a 54% reduction in Moncada hirsutism escore was observed in group 1 and 52% reduction in group 2. Observed secondary effects of spironolactone were increases in diuresis, fatigability, acne aggravation and seborrhea in two patients. Two additional patients had spotting. No secondary effect attributable to glucocorticoid use were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Spironolactone is effective and safe in the treatment of hirsutism. Androgenic supression did no increases its effectiveness, underscoring the peripheral anti androgenic activity os spironolactone.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

[Has oligomenorrhea a pathological meaning? The importance of this symptom in internal medicine].

BACKGROUND: Oligomenorrhea, defined as a menstrual cycle lasting 36 to 90 days, can be a normal condition in the first years after the menarche. When it persists or appears after a period of normal menstrual cycles, an underlying illness must be sought. AIM: To assess ovulation and causes of anovulatory cycles in women with oligomenorrhea, compared with causes of secondary amenorrhea. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred one women of less the 35 years old, presenting with oligomenorrhea persisting 5 years after menarche or lasting more than two years after a period of normal menstrual cycles, were studied. Ovulation was studied measuring serial plasma progesterone during normal or induced (with intramuscular progesterone) menstrual cycles. RESULTS: Eighty nine percent of women had anovulatory oligomenorrhea. The main causes were polycystic ovarian disease in 51% and hypothalamic dysfunction in 31%. Thirty percent of women with secondary amenorrhea had polycystic ovarian disease and 14% had hyperprolactinemia. Women older than 20 years old or with more than 10 years of gynecological age had a higher frequency of polycystic ovarian disease and a lower prevalence of hypothalamic dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS: There is a high frequency of anovulatory oligomenorrheas. Therefore, this symptom deserves a thorough endocrinological assessment to uncover underlying diseases. Special attention must be paid to polycystic ovary syndrome, due to its importance in internal medicine as a risk factor for myocardial infarction, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

[Prolonged remission of female hyperandrogenism after discontinuing glucocorticoid therapy].

Adrenal androgen hypersecretion either produced by genetic defects or reticular disfunction, is reduced by exogenous glucocorticoid administration and, as with any suppression therapy, it should relapse when the therapy is discontinued. However, prolonged remissions of adrenal androgen hypersecretion after discontinuing glucocorticoids have been described. We report 15 patients with adrenal hyperandrogenism and elevated levels of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate that received treatment with dexamethasone. After one month of treatment with dexamethasone 0.5 mg/day, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate levels returned to normal and remained so during a mean of 19 months receiving dexamethasone 0.25 mg/day. One year after discontinuing therapy, hormone levels continued within normal range in all patients. It is concluded that a long remission period of adrenal hyperandrogenism was achieves after discontinuing glucocorticoid therapy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

[Functional adrenal hyperandrogenism: changing perspectives during its historical evolution].

The approach to adrenal hyperandrogenism, due to genetical or non-genetical enzymatic alterations, has changed dramatically during the last 50 years. To allow a better understanding of the subject, we focused it from a historical perspective, defining four stages analyzed in detail. Now there is consent on the existence of a functional adrenal hyperandrogenism, which has an important role in acne, hirsutism and menstrual disturbances.

Acne Vulgaris↗
PubMed1993

[Therapeutic usefulness of antiandrogens].

Antiandrogens are substances that block androgen receptors. The antiandrogenic action of some of these medications, as H2 blockers and some diuretics, was discovered as a collateral effect. They are used for the treatment of acne, hirsutism and seborrhea in women; they are also used in precocious puberty and sexual hyperexcitability states. The clinical usefulness of these drugs is unquestionable, but their prescription requires a through knowledge of their endocrinological effects.

Androgen Antagonists↗
PubMed1993

[Amenorrhea, insulin resistance and acanthosis nigricans. A hyperandrogenic and a normoandrogenic clinical forms].

Two cases of HAIR-AN syndrome (hyperandrogenism, insulin resistance and acanthosis nigricans) are presented. The first case corresponds to a female with a systemic lupus erythematosus and acanthosis nigricans in which an insulin resistance was documented; the patient was in amenorrhea with severe hypoestrogenism, although she did not have clinical signs of hyperandrogenism and serum androgen levels were normal. This case corresponds to a HAIR-AN syndrome associated to autoimmune diseases or type A of Kahn. The second case is a young female with clinical signs of hyperandrogenism associated to high testosterone levels; she had acanthosis nigricans and fasting and postprandial hyperinsulinemia. Probably, this case corresponds to a type A or C HAIR-AN syndrome in which there is a decrease in the number of insulin receptors or a post receptor defect in insulin action.

Acanthosis Nigricans↗
PubMed1990

[Autoimmune polyglandular syndrome. Clinical experience in 21 cases].

The autoimmune polyglandular syndrome is characterized by the association of 2 or more endocrine disorders of autoimmune origin which may coexist with autoimmune disorders in other organs. Roughly 25% of patients with an autoimmune endocrinopathy show evidence of autoimmune disease elsewhere. We report 21 patients with autoimmune polyglandular syndrome classified according to Neufeld.

Adult↗