Prolactin-lowering effect of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist administration in prolactinoma patients

We studied the effect of LHRH agonist administration on serum PRL levels in five women with microprolactinomas and two women and a man with intrasellar macroprolactinomas. Each patient received either D-Trp⁶-LHRH or buserelin for 90 days. Serum PRL levels decreased significantly in the patients with microprolactinomas by 65%, from 156 ± 93 (± SD) to 54 ± 49 μg/L on day 90 (P = 0.011), but it did not decrease in the macroprolactinoma patients. Mean serum LH and FSH decreased by 43% and 62.5%, respectively, in all eight patients. There was no statistically significant correlation between the serum PRL and LH or FSH levels in the microprolactinoma patients. We conclude that LHRH agonists can counteract the hyperprolactinemia produced by microprolactinomas and that the effect probably is not exerted by an action on the gonadotrophs.