Effect of nafarelin on bone density

Article Abstract:

Nafarelin is a drug that mimics the gonadotropin-releasing hormone, which is produced by glands in the brain. Endometriosis is a gynecological complication that develops when the endometrial cells, which normally line the uterus, grow and function in other locations in the body. Endometrial cells respond to estrogen, which is produced by the ovaries, as if they were located inside the uterus. Nafarelin stops the ovaries from producing estrogen, thereby shrinking endometrial tissue. Estrogen is known to protect women from decreasing bone density and bone loss. To see if nafarelin alters bone density, 25 women with endometriosis were studied. Patients were given either nafarelin 200 micrograms a day (low dose) or 400 micrograms a day (high dose). After six months of treatment, the drugs were stopped. Bone mineral levels were consistent during the low dosage of nafarelin, but decreased with the higher dose. When the drugs were stopped, the levels returned to normal. Thus, bone resorption increased during administration of both high and low doses of nafarelin, but normal levels return six months after the medication is stopped. When nafarelin (400 micrograms a day) was given in combination with progesterone (another ovarian hormone suppressed during therapy), loss of bone minerals was not significant. Nafarelin does affect bone metabolism and the addition of progesterone may help maintain the calcium/bone balance. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Usage, Measurement, Physiological aspects, Hormone therapy, Bone resorption, Bone densitometry, Norethindrone

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Effects of a gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist on the calcium-parathyroid axis and bone turnover in women with endometriosis

Article Abstract:

Women with endometriosis who are treated with nafarelin may lose bone mineral density, but may regain it after the treatment ends. Endometriosis occurs when menstrual tissue and blood spill out of the fallopian tubes into the abdomen. Researchers measured the bone mineral density of 22 young women who were taking nafarelin for endometriosis. Nafarelin is a gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist which decreases the release of estrogen. Overall, the women lost 2.2% of bone mineral density in the lumbar spine after six months of nafarelin treatment, but by six months after the end of treatment, measurements were back to normal. This loss of bone mineral density was considered significant. Doctors should monitor women being treated with GnRH agonists for bone loss.

Bone density

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Quantification of endometriosis-associated pain and quality of life during the stimulatory phase of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist therapy: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial

Article Abstract:

Drugs that mimic gonadotropin-releasing hormone can temporarily worsen symptoms when used to treat endometriosis, according to a study of 120 women. Endometriosis is characterized by the occurrence of uterine tissue outside the uterus.

Health aspects, Gonadotropin releasing hormone, Gonadorelin

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