Aromatase inhibitors: the next generation of therapeutics for endometriosis?

Attar E, Erkut Attar, Bulun Se, Serdar E. Bulun
Fertility and sterility · 2006 · vol. 85(5) , pp. 1307–1318 · doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2005.09.064 · PMID:16647373 · W2009015643
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This paper reviews the potential of aromatase inhibitors as a novel therapeutic strategy for managing endometriosis by reducing estrogen production.

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Abstract

Objective and designTo review the role of aromatase inhibitors (AIs) in the treatment of endometriosis.Conclusion(s)Endometriosis is a common estrogen-dependent disorder that can result in substantial morbidity, including pelvic pain, multiple operations, and infertility. Approximately only half of women with endometriosis get pain relief from existing medical or surgical treatments. Medical treatments usually are directed at inhibiting estrogen action or its production from the ovaries and do not address local estrogen biosynthesis by the aromatase enzyme in endometriotic lesions. A single gene encodes aromatase, which is the final enzyme in the estrogen biosynthesis pathway, and its inhibition effectively eliminates estrogen production. The recently introduced highly specific AIs have successfully treated pelvic pain and significantly reduced the lesion size. In premenopausal women, an AI alone may induce ovarian folliculogenesis, and thus AIs are combined with a progestin, a combination oral contraceptive, or a GnRH analogue. The side-effect profile of AIs administered in combination with an oral contraceptive or a progestin is remarkably benign. We review herein the published clinical evidence for the use of AIs in the treatment of endometriosis.

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Condition tags

endometriosis

MeSH descriptors

Aromatase Inhibitors Aromatase Inhibitors Endometriosis Estrogen Antagonists Estrogen Antagonists Practice Patterns, Physicians' Aromatase Inhibitors Clinical Trials as Topic Endometriosis Estrogen Antagonists Female Forecasting Humans Practice Patterns, Physicians' Treatment Outcome

Citation neighborhood

Papers in the corpus that this work cites (lower rings, blue) and that cite this one (upper rings, green). Dot size scales with the paper's in-corpus citation count — bigger dot = more influential within the endo/adeno field. Click a dot to open that paper. [ expand to 2 hops ] — adds papers reached through this work's immediate citers/citees. Heavier; up to 60 extra dots.

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Cited by (50)

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