A endometriose é caracterizada pela presença de tecido endometrial, localizado fora da cavidade uterina, como superfície peritoneal, ovários e septo retovaginal. A prevalência gira em torno de 6 a 10%. Em relação à etiopatogenia, a teoria da menstruação retrógrada é aceita, porém alterações na biologia molecular do endométrio parecem ser fundamentais para o desenvolvimento dos focos ectópicos de endometriose. Mulheres com endometriose podem ser assintomáticas ou apresentar queixas de dismenorreia, dispareunia, dor pélvica crônica e/ou infertilidade. Embora o diagnóstico definitivo da endometriose necessite de uma intervenção cirúrgica, preferencialmente por videolaparoscopia, diversos achados nos exames físico, de imagem e laboratoriais já podem predizer, com alto grau de confiabilidade, que a paciente apresenta endometriose. Os tratamentos mais difundidos atualmente são a cirurgia, a terapia de supressão ovariana ou a associação de ambas. Tratamentos farmacológicos que não inibem a função ovariana estão em investigação. AbstractEndometriosis is characterized by the presence of endometrial tissue, localized outside the uterine cavity, such as peritoneal surface, ovaries, and rectum-vaginal septum. The prevalence is about 6 to 10%. Concerning the etiopathogenesis, the retrograde menstruation theory is accepted, although disruption in endometrial molecular biology seems to be fundamental to the development of endometriosis ectopic focuses. Women with endometriosis may be asymptomatic or may present complaints of dysmenorrhea, dispareunia, chronic pelvic pain and/or infertility. Although the definitive diagnosis of endometriosis needs a surgical intervention, mainly by laparoscopy, many findings obtained by physicalexamination and imaging and laboratory tests can predict, with a high degree of reliability, that the patient has endometriosis. The most common current treatments include surgery, ovarian suppression therapy or both. Pharmacological treatments that do not inhibit ovarian function are under investigation.

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Gender incongruence is defined as a condition in which an individual self-identifies and desires to have physical characteristics and social roles that connote the opposite biological sex. Gender dysphoria is when an individual displays the anxiety and/or depression disorders that result from the incongruity between the gender identity and the biological sex. The gender affirmation process must be performed by a multidisciplinary team. The main goal of the hormone treatment is to start the development of male physical characteristics by means of testosterone administration that may be offered to transgender men who are 18 years old or over. The use of testosterone is usually well tolerated and improves the quality of life. However, there is still lack of evidence regarding the effects and risks of the long-term use of this hormone. Many different pharmacological formulations have been used in the transsexualization process. The most commonly used formulation is the intramuscular testosterone esters in a short-term release injection, followed by testosterone cypionate or testosterone enanthate. In the majority of testosterone therapy protocols, the male physical characteristics can be seen in almost all users after 6 months of therapy, and the maximum virilization effects are usually achieved after 3 to 5 years of regular use of the hormone. To minimize risks, plasmatic testosterone levels should be kept within male physiological ranges (300 to 1,000 ng/dl) during hormonal treatment. It is recommended that transgender men under androgen therapy be monitored every 3 months during the 1st year of treatment and then, every 6 to 12 months.

Recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) is defined as the occurrence of two or more consecutive pregnancy losses. It is an important reproductive condition with a complex etiology. In approximately 50% of RPL cases an explanation for the cause is not found and they are therefore classified as idiopathic RPL. One of the causes implicated in RPL is thrombophilia, which consists of hemostatic disorders that lead to an increase in thromboembolic processes. The aim of this study was to evaluate polymorphic variants in genes related to thrombophilia as a risk factor in women with RPL. We investigated 145 women with at least two consecutive pregnancy losses and 135 women with at least two children and no history of pregnancy loss. Genotypes for the polymorphisms MTHFR C677T, FVL, FII (prothrombin), eNOS T-786C, and eNOS Glu298Asp were determined using a real-time PCR. Information about the exposure to environmental risk factors was also collected. There was no significant association between the environmental risk factors assessed and the polymorphisms studied. We did not find statistically significant differences in genotypic or allelic frequencies for the polymorphisms studied, in either the women with RPL or in the control group. Such polymorphisms should therefore not be considered as risk factors for this condition in this population.

Abstract. Current data are inconsistent regarding the association between interleukin-6 (IL-6), a marker of acute phase inflammation, and pelvic endometriosis. The aim of the present study was to assess IL-6 levels in serum and peritoneal fluid (PF), as well as IL-6 gene expression in adipose tissue (AT) and endometrial samples in pelvic endometriosis. A total of 30 patients with endometriosis and 18 women with a normal pelvis were enrolled in this case-control study. IL-6 levels in PF and serum were determined using a human enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and IL-6 gene expression was evaluated using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction. It was observed that IL-6 levels in the PF were higher in patients with endometriosis than in the control group (P=0.047) and patients with stage III/IV endometriosis exhibited higher IL-6 levels in the PF than those with stage I/II endometriosis and the control group (P<0.001). Furthermore, a strong correlation between PF IL-6 levels and the revised American Society for Reproductive Medicine score for endometriosis severity was identified (r=0.77; P<0.001). IL-6 gene expression did not differ significantly between endometriosis and control groups in endometrial samples or in AT of both groups. The results of the current study suggest that there may be an association between IL-6 and the presence and severity of pelvic endometriosis. The source of this higher IL-6 seems not to be specifically related to regional AT.

In this study, leptin/BMI ratio in serum and peritoneal fluid and gene expression of leptin and long form leptin receptor (OB-RL) were assessed in eutopic and ectopic endometria of women with endometriosis and controls. Increased serum leptin/BMI ratio was found in endometriosis patients. Leptin and OB-RL gene expression was significantly higher in ectopic versus eutopic endometrium of patients and controls. A positive, significant correlation was observed between leptin and OB-RL transcripts in ectopic endometria and also in eutopic endometria in endometriosis and control groups. A negative and significant correlation was found between OB-RL mRNA expression and peritoneal fluid leptin/BMI ratio only in endometriosis. These data suggest that, through a modulatory interaction with its active receptor, leptin might play a role in the development of endometrial implants.

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Arq Bras Endocrinol Metab vol 47 nº 4 Agosto 2003 432 RESUMOA síndrome dos ovários policísticos (PCOS) é a endocrinopatia mais freqüente na mulher em idade reprodutiva. O quadro clínico é variável, mas em geral apresenta-se com hirsutismo, acne e/ou alopecia androgênica, anovulação crônica associada a distúrbio menstrual e infertilidade. A resistência insulínica pode estar presente em mais da metade dos casos, em especial nas pacientes obesas. A etiopatogenia ainda não foi totalmente esclarecida, mas mecanismos neuroendócrinos vêm sendo estudados nos últimos anos. Embora esteja bem estabelecida a presença de secreção inapropriada do eixo GnRH-LH em pacientes com PCOS, algumas delas, especialmente as obesas/hiperinsulinêmicas, exibem níveis normais de LH e uma atenuação de sua resposta aos testes de estímulo. Recentemente, descrevemos uma correlação negativa entre leptina e LH em pacientes com PCOS, sugerindo que a atenuação nos níveis de LH nestas pacientes possa estar relacionada a um estado de resistência à leptina. Por outro lado, evidências sugerem que o eixo somatotrófico participe também dos mecanismos fisiopatológicos envolvidos na PCOS. Dados recentes do nosso grupo demonstram que pacientes de peso normal e normoinsulinêmicas apresentam uma maior resposta do GH à clonidina do que pacientes com hirsutismo idiopático. Um mecanismo possível seria uma ação co-gonadotrófica do GH, contribuindo para o hiperandrogenismo clínico e a anovulação. Outra possibilidade é que a elevação da secreção de GH seja somente um epifenômeno vinculado ao aumento de androgênios ovarianos e sua conversão periférica em estrogênios. Estudos futuros são necessários para esclarecer os mecanismos subjacentes associados às alterações descritas neste trabalho e sua relevân-cia na etiopatogenia, diagnóstico e tratamento desta síndrome. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age. PCOS is a heterogeneous clinical condition, characterized by hirsutism, acne and/or androgenetic alopecia, irregular menstrual cycles and infertility. Moreover, a considerable percentage of PCOS women present insulin resistance, in particular those with obesity. The pathogenesis of the syndrome is still unclear, but neuroendocrine mechanisms have been studied in the last years. Although an inappropriate GnRH/LH secretion is well established, some obese and hyperinsulinemic women with PCOS present an attenuation of these neuroendocrine abnormalities. Recently, we described a negative correlation between leptin and LH levels in PCOS patients, suggesting that the attenuation in basal or stimulated response of LH in obese PCOS patients might be related to a leptin-resistant state. On the other