Prolactin (PRL) is a hormone, mainly secreted by lactotroph cells of the anterior pituitary gland. Recent studies have shown it may also be produced by many extrapituitary cells. Its well-recognized PRL plays an important role in lactation during pregnancy, but it is involved in other biological functions such as angiogenesis, immunoregulation and osmoregulation. Hyperprolactinemia is a typical condition producing reproductive dysfunction in both sexes, resulting in hypogonadism, infertility and galactorrhea. It may be also asymptomatic. Lactotroph adenomas (prolactinoma) is one of the most common cause of PRL excess, representing approximately 40% of all pituitary tumors. Several other conditions should be excluded before a clear diagnosis of hyperprolactinemia is made. Hyperprolactinemia may be secondary to pharmacological or pathological interruption of hypothalamic-pituitary dopaminergic pathways or idiopathic. Stress, renal failure or hypothyroidism are other frequent conditions to exclude in patients with hyperprolactinemia. We will review biochemical characteristics and physiological functions of that hormone. Clinical and pharmacological approach to hyperprolactinemia will also be discussed.

The authors investigated whether testosterone levels and testosterone availability differ between older lean subjects with and without Alzheimer's disease (AD). Sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and estradiol levels were higher, whereas the free androgenization index (FAI) was lower, in lean subjects with AD than in lean subjects without AD. Factors involved in the increase of SHBG secretion could have an important role in the lower testosterone availability of subjects with AD.

Menopausal disorders may include shorter-term symptoms, such as hot flushes and night sweats (vasomotor symptoms, VMS) and longer-term chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), osteoporosis, and cognitive impairment. Initially, no clear link between the shorter-term symptoms and longer-term chronic conditions was evident and these disorders seemed to occur independently from each other. However, there is a growing body of evidence demonstrating that VMS may be a biomarker for chronic disease. In this review, the association between VMS and a range of chronic postmenopausal conditions including CVD, osteoporosis, and cognitive decline is discussed. Prevention of CVD in women, as for men, should be started early, and effective management of chronic disease in postmenopausal women has to start with the awareness that VMS during menopause are harbingers of things to come and should be treated accordingly.

Our results show that multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis can be used to monitor variations in body water compartments in normal pregnancy and detect gestational hypertension.

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Osteoporosis (OP) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the most important causes of mortality and morbility in the elderly. Lots of studies showed a correlation between bone loss and cardiovascular risk mediated by the vascular calcification. The relationship between OP and CVD could be firstly explained by their common risk factors such as age, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity and menopause. However, other different hypotheses were proposed to clarify this link. Multiple factors, for example bone morphogenetic proteins, osteoprotegerin, receptor activator of nuclear factor κB ligand, parathyroid hormone, phosphate, oxidized lipids and vitamins D and K seemed to be involved in both conditions, indicating a possible common pathophysiologic mechanism. We review and discuss the available data describing this association. Further studies are necessary to better investigate similarities between OP and CVD.

T is effective in treating menopausal syndrome with a good tolerability profile. In spite of some unsolved issues in term of safety, T is still a good treatment option for early PMW.

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