About the EDD and/or EDC issue, and a request for input from readers

EDD stands for Estimated Date of Delivery, while EDC stands for Estimated Date of Confinement. The bioZhena thinking, in one brief sentence, is: Aim to replace stochastic with deterministic, which is also the purpose of our eukairosic^TM diagnostic tools.

The medical position on current status of obstetrics can be characterized by the following two papers.

1) Theory of obstetrics: an epidemiologic framework for justifying medically indicated early delivery [BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2007 Mar 28;7:4. Joseph KS, Perinatal Epidemiology Research Unit, Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada]

QUOTE: Modern obstetrics is faced with a serious paradox. Obstetric practice is becoming increasingly interventionist … Whereas … mortality declines exponentially with increasing gestational duration, temporal increases in medically indicated labour induction and cesarean delivery have resulted in rising rates of preterm birth and declining rates of postterm birth. … [This] provides a theoretical justification for medically indicated early delivery and reconciles the contemporary divide between obstetric theory and obstetric practice. END QUOTE.

And 2) A re-look at the duration of human pregnancy [Singapore Med J. 2006 Dec;47(12):1044-8. Bhat RA and Kushtagi P, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, India]

QUOTE: The duration of human pregnancy is arbitrarily taken as 280 days (40 weeks). Foetuses are considered to be at high risk once pregnancy goes beyond the expected date of confinement. … Conclusion: Mean gestational age at the onset of labour for women native to the area of study was 272 days (standard deviation 9 days). Pregnancies beyond a duration of 280 days showed significantly increased perinatal morbidity. It is suggested that there is a need for determining the length of gestation and to compile gestation-wise incidence of … neonatal morbidity indicators for different populations. END QUOTE.

Related articles are here.

I will rely on the birthing specialist, Janelle Durham, to verbalize for you the status quo in this aspect of the homo sapiens experience - below.

Per Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence, article Gestation Period and Gestational Age ,

” a gestation period of thirty-eight weeks (266 days) is calculated for women who are pregnant by a procedure such as in vitro fertilization or artificial insemination that allows them to know their exact date of conception.”

The Ovulona device from bioZhena will provide to the woman user a very simple means to record the day of any intercourse. In every cycle, whether pregnancy is planned or not. This must become a part of the routine. The information will be electronically recorded along with the daily or almost-daily measurement data inherent in the use of the Ovulona. With that menstrual cycling history data, this intercourse-timing information will be available for optional use by the woman’s physician(s).

Therefore, the routine use of the Ovulona will provide for an equivalent of the above-referenced 38-week (266 days) calculation available to the women receiving IVF or artificial insemination.

This alone should be an improvement on the current way of EDD/EDC assessment.

In this context, an investigation should be undertaken into the question of whether any inference can be drawn from the woman’s menstrual cycle history prior to the conceptive intercourse. Any comments on this would be welcome, even about anecdotal or subjective or tentative observations that may be available. However non-scientific, however tentative, however uncertain an individual answer or input from you may be…

Questions.

E.g., do women with more or less regular cycles tend to exhibit a regular gestation period, and vice versa?

And, certainly, what evidence is available in medical literature (or maybe in unpublished records?) about the outcomes of the IVF and/or artificial insemination pregnancies, i.e., about their documented gestation periods? Does the 38 weeks projection work? Always? If not always, can anything be correlated with any deviation?

Do women with distinctly irregular menstrual cycles tend to have non-regular gestation periods?

The complicating effect of first versus subsequent pregnancy has already been noted, of course… That evidence exists for gestational length variability with ethnicity (or race) has also been noted [International Journal of Epidemiology 2004, Volume 33, Number 1, pp. 107-113 ].

Conceivably, there is no such preliminary info available, and we shall have to try and gather even these preliminary data in a systematic manner, but - no question asked, nothing learned… Public or private input would be appreciated. [Private at vaclavkirsner at yahoo.com, please, if you prefer to communicate privately.]

There actually would seem to be a fairly good basis for this attempt at an online inquiry (or survey), in preparation for an introduction of a tool with which to study the subject further. -

According to the due dates paper by Janelle Durham, written for Certification with Birth Education in January, 2002 ,

QUOTE: “some women are aware of when they ovulate, either based on formal methods and record-keeping such as daily temperature checks, or on physical symptoms such as mild pain upon ovulation, or observation of changes in vaginal mucus.

Many women know the dates when conception was possible, because they know the dates when they had intercourse during their most recent menstrual cycle. Due dates can be calculated based on these dates, but many physicians prefer to calculate it from date of last menstrual period. They may only calculate from conception date if conception was medically managed and supervised through techniques such as artificial insemination.

Based on date of last normal menstrual period. Due dates are typically calculated based upon the date the last menstrual period began, according to the mother’s report. Naegele’s rule assumes that ovulation occurred 14 days after LMP, which is only the case for women with 28 day cycles.

Some caregivers will ask their patients for a history of menstrual cycles so that they can adjust this number, as appropriate, for cycles of different lengths or irregular cycles. It’s also important to consider: recent use of oral contraceptives, and their possible effect on ovulation date; inaccurate memory about when the last period occurred, the possibility of interpreting post-conception ‘spotting’ as a light period, and unrecognized pregnancy losses.

These issues all complicate due date prediction, and it’s estimated that nearly 25% of infants who would be classified as preterm birth on the basis of the last normal menstrual period are not preterm. (Cited in Health Canada)” END QUOTE.

At this point, let me translate the one brief sentence I wrote at the top into a less specialist language. Ms. Durham shows a statistical distribution of gestation periods applicable to any woman, and that is the approach I labeled stochastic, because of its statistical nature.

I admit, the word is harking back to the days of my postgrad phys chem endeavors, which were mostly endeavours at the time. We could also say, probabilistic - two syllables longer, though!

http://transitiontoparenthood.com/ttp/birthed/duedatespaper.htm

Janelle Durham, for Certification with Birth Education NW. January, 2002.

With our eurokairosic^TM diagnostic tools, we generally aim to determine the right time, and in the case at hand we would like to provide for a much less fuzzy assessment of the EDD and EDC. After all, precedent exists in the A.R.T. arena, and prerequisites, too, to some extent at least. In a nutshell, let’s try to replace the LMP/Naegele-based approach with a hard data-based technique, applied to each and by each Mom individually.

Again, your comments and answers to the questions above would be very useful. Public or private input would be appreciated. [Private at vaclavkirsner at yahoo.com, please, if you prefer private.]

 

Parturition means birthing (birth) and dystocia a difficult one

And what is a parturition alarm?

 

For these and other entries, see the Alphabet of bioZhena at

/2007/11/28/the-alphabet-of-biozhena/

 

Parturition alarm:

This is a concept that has to do with the need to know when labor or delivery is beginning, because the birthing female may be in need of help.

At the time of writing the first Alphabet draft more than five years ago, an Internet search produced only one such technology, a pressure-sensing girth, suitable for the horse breeder only, because it utilizes the fact that the horse mare lies on her side only in the process of parturition. To illustrate, we borrow a nice picture from a more recent publication found in today’s search on parturition alarm, which search still shows a preponderance of equine innovations:

In the originally noted publication, reference was made to some other method that would detect the emergence of the amniotic sac or of the foal from the vulva (vaginal orifice) but that was not a satisfactory solution. In the horse-breeding arena, about 5-6% of births require help. Various approaches to the birth alarm solution have been attempted.

These days, there are quite a few patents etc. found in the parturition alarm search. And even 5 years ago, a patent from New Mexico University should have been found because their intra-vaginal parturition alarm patent (basically for cows) was published in 1987.

In human obstetrics, where most births take place in hospitals, determining the right time of confinement would be very beneficial. bioZhena (and/or its sister company, bioPecus) will investigate our vaginal sensor technology - suitably modified - with a view to developing a parturition alarm applicable to any mammal.

Also relevant in this context is the implication of the Ovulona making available the menstrual cycle (folliculogenesis) data over many months or cycles before conception. This will enable a more accurate anticipation of the EDD, Expected Date of Delivery. You will understand this better below, under Parturition. Well, check out Figuring Your Due Date, too - from the Midwife Archives, listed also in the Blogroll, on the right (at the top of the blog).

Let us put it this way: Since this is the bioZhena blog (and not bioPecus, for veterinary tools), the EDD issue must be addressed first, before any parturition alarm developments. Because we are primarily concerned with the Rerum Naturare Feminina, and only after that with any concerns of perinatal medical professionals.

And it would still be of great interest to hear from an expert Latinist about the correct way of saying this in plural, the Natural Thing of Women, the Women’s Natural Thing…

This being a reference to /2007/12/16/cervix-uteri-and-seven-or-eight-related-things/ .

Parturition:

The process of giving birth; childbirth. [From Late Latin parturitio, from Latin parturitus, past participle of parturire, to be in labor.]

Parturition is illustrated at http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/esp/2001_saladin/folder_structure/re/m2/s5/ .

The illustration’s legend indicates that physicians usually calculate the gestation period (length of the pregnancy) as 280 days: 40 weeks or 10 lunar months from the last menstrual period (LMP) to the date of confinement, which is the estimated date of delivery of the infant [EDD].

Indubitably, due dates are a little-understood concept:

“Truth is, even if you know the exact date when you ovulated, you still can only estimate the baby’s unique gestational cycle to about plus or minus two weeks” [ http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/dueDates.html ]. Why should that be? Because of the variability of your menstrual cycle lengths? (They vary even if you do not think so).

Statistically, the gestation time for human babies has a mean of 278 days and a standard deviation of 12 days, an uncomfortably large spread. The old Naegele Rule of a 40-week pregnancy was invented by a Bible-inspired botanist Harmanni Boerhaave in 1744 and later promoted by Franz Naegele in 1812. It is still believed to work fairly well as a rule of thumb for many pregnancies. However, the rule of thumb also suggests: “If your menstrual cycles are about 28 days, quite regular, and this is not your first child, your physician’s dating is probably fine. If your cycles are longer or irregular, or if this is your first child, the due date your physician has given you may be off, setting you up for all kinds of problems” (induction, interventions, C-section among them).

This is where the bioZhena technology can be expected to provide help, making it possible to reckon the EDD with recorded menstrual cycle (folliculogenesis history) data rather than merely with the LMP + 280 days. This, once properly researched, may be expected to have a significant impact on obstetric management. — Any comments?

It is ironic that, in this age of technological medicine, American women worry about their birthing process not being allowed to take its own natural course on account of an ancient method of predicting the EDD.

Ironically, the 40 week dogma - which is the gestational counterpart of the unacceptable calendar method of birth control (the so-called “Vatican roulette”) - does not reconcile the 295+ days of the 10 lunar months; and yet, at the same time, the U.S. has an unusually high perinatal death rate, resulting from high statistics of too early (preterm) labor. Quid agitur? See also under Gestation.

Dystocia or birthing difficulty:

Dystocia is difficult delivery, difficult parturition. From Latin dys-, bad, from Greek dus-, ill, hard + Greek tokos, delivery. Calf losses at birth result in a major reduction in the net calf crop. Data show that 60% of these losses are due to dystocia (defined as delayed and difficult birth) and at least 50% of these calf deaths could be prevented by timely obstetrical assistance. The USDA web site http://larrl.ars.usda.gov/physiology_history.htm is apparently no longer there but when it was it indicated that an electronic calving monitor was being developed to determine maternal and fetal stress during calving. These studies are important since they are leading the way for developing methods to reduce the $800 million calf and cow loss that occurs each year at calving in the USA’s beef herds.

In analogy with the superiority of in vivo monitoring of folliculogenesis versus tracking behavioral estrus (heat), in vivo monitoring of the progress towards parturition must be a priori a more promising approach.

The telemetric version of the BioMeter - the animal version of the Ovulona technology - will hopefully provide a tool for these efforts. Once tested on animals, human use will be a logical extension of the endeavor. (Or endeavour, should it take place in Europe! Smiley…)

Comment about the EDD and/or EDC issue, and request for input:

Again, EDD stands for Estimated Day of Delivery, while EDC stands for Estimated Day of Confinement.

Per Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence, article Gestation Period and Gestational Age [ http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g2602/is_0002/ai_2602000272 ], ” a gestation period of thirty-eight weeks (266 days) is calculated for women who are pregnant by a procedure such as in vitro fertilization or artificial insemination that allows them to know their exact date of conception.”

The Ovulona device from bioZhena will provide to the woman user a very simple means to record the day of any intercourse. In every cycle, whether pregnancy is planned or not. This must become a part of the routine. The information will be electronically recorded along with the daily or almost-daily measurement data inherent in the use of the Ovulona. With that menstrual cycling history data, this intercourse-timing information will be available for optional use by the woman’s physician(s).

Therefore, the routine use of the Ovulona will provide for an equivalent of the above-referenced 38-week (266 days) calculation available to the women receiving IVF or artificial insemination.

This alone should be an improvement on the current way of EDD/EDC assessment.

In addition, an investigation should be undertaken into the question of whether any inference can be drawn from the woman’s menstrual cycle history prior to the conceptive intercourse. Any comments on this would be welcome, even about anecdotal or subjective or tentative observations that may be available already. However non-scientific, however tentative, however uncertain an individual answer or input from you may be…

E.g., do women with more or less regular cycles tend to exhibit a regular gestation period, and vice versa?

And, certainly, what evidence is available in medical literature (or maybe in unpublished records?) about the outcomes of the IVF and/or artificial insemination pregnancies, i.e., about their documented gestation periods? Does the 38 weeks projection work? Always? If not always, can anything be correlated with any deviation?

Do women with distinctly irregular menstrual cycles tend to have non-regular gestation periods?

The complicating effect of first versus subsequent pregnancy has already been noted, of course…

Conceivably, there is no such preliminary info available, and we shall have to try and gather even these preliminary data in a systematic manner, but - no question asked, nothing learned… Public or private input would be appreciated. [Private at vaclavkirsner at yahoo.com --- should you prefer private communication.]

Birthday, and how it relates to the bioZhena enterprise – eukairosic™ diagnostic tools

Today is a major anniversary related to the bioZhena enterprise. Namely, a round-number (and not small) birthday of the offspring whose begetting had much, if not everything, to do with the inception of the project.

The biologically educated member of the would-be parental team insisted that medical help would have to be the very last resort, as she did not wish to be poked in and subjected to the various medical procedures available in the country of the proud Albion (that, alas, no longer ruled the waves!), where this awakening was going on. The image of what she resented getting into is telling, and it’s not even the whole story.

 

Awakening on the part of said couple, who till then took steps to minimize or theoretically avoid getting in the family way, owing to circumstances. As in too many instances the world over, the “awakening” was left until somewhat too late. I do not wish to talk about age specifics, but you probably know that particularly female fertility (more accurately put, fecundity or fecundability) decreases starting around or even before the Christ’s age, and so – in retrospect – it was no great surprise to find that achieving pregnancy was not as simple as expected. At the time, actually, this was a great surprise…

At the time, yours truly was not an expert in the field that deals with certain practicalities of the most important aspect of life, by which many of us mean procreation, reproduction, and its management. I am referring to some insight into the practicalities on the female side of things procreative, which insight was not there at the time - but the better half knew the basic fundamental that I now delight in referencing as eukairosic.

In a nutshell, the word refers to the right time, opportune time – exactly what we are about - the strategic or “right time; the opportune point of time at which something should be done.” A window of opportunity is kairos time.

For more about this, the Wikipedia article can be recommended, at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kairos . Let’s cite: Kairos (καιρός) is an ancient Greek word meaning the “right or opportune moment,” or “God’s time” [sic; thus said - but this should say “gods’ time”]. The ancient Greeks had many gods, and two words for time, chronos and kairos. While the former refers to chronological or sequential time, the latter signifies “a time in between”, a moment of undetermined period of time in which “something” special happens. What the special something is depends on who is using the word. END QUOTE.

If you visit that article, you will probably understand why I would like to look at the possibility of adopting as our company logo QUOTE a monochrome fresco by Mantegna at Palazzo Ducale in Mantua (about 1510 C.E.) that shows a female Kairos (most probably Occasio)… UNQUOTE.

You will also appreciate that, since we are not theologians, and because “eu-“ is the Greek prefix meaning well or good or true or easy, my choice of the adjective that we want to trademark as descriptive of bioZhena’s wares is eukairosic™.

And so here, for the sake of accurate definition, is one other item from The Alphabet of bioZhena - /2007/11/28/the-alphabet-of-biozhena/

 

Fecundability and fecundity:

Fecundability is the probability of achieving pregnancy within one menstrual cycle - about 20% or maybe 25% in normal couples [sic; the probability depends on many factors, including age - vide infra, or see below].

Fecundity is the ability to achieve a live birth.

Fecundability is strongly influenced by the age of the partners, and it is maximal at about age 24. There is a slight decline at ages 24 - 30, and a rapid decline after age 30.

The words are derived from Latin fecundus, fecund, from the root of fetus, via Old French fecond. Fecund means fruitful in children, or prolific.

As for the eukairosic diagnostic tools, their utility goes beyond reproductive management. Due to folliculogenesis (menstrual cycling), even things such as administration of medications or certain diagnostic examinations must be performed at the right time within the menstrual cycle…

Scire quod sciendum

fecundoscitus!!!

Thus spoke the exegete and father of Barnaby (and Petrushka), Vaclav Kirsner © 2007

 

What is the mechanism of stress, and how does it affect reproduction?

“When pushed too far, subfertility occurs”

Here is an ad hoc selection of a few abstracts from my files on psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology papers addressing ovulation, reproduction (folliculogenesis).

Abstracts of ad hoc selected papers about stress in reproductive physiology:

What is the mechanism of stress, and how does it affect reproduction?

The first few are representative of animal work, and then several abstracts represent the literature on stress in the human female. In between, let’s display our cyclic profile data on a non-baseline menstrual cycle with delayed ovulation. This record illustrates how our Ovulona^TM device can detect the effect of stress on the course of the menstrual cycle. Non-baseline refers to any real-life female with all the stressors of our daily life, no baseline simplifications of conditions such as we need to try and approach what we would call ideality (at least in physical science we would…).

Should these abstracts turn out to be too stressful, then you may perhaps enjoy better another selection I just came across, Introduction to psychoneuroendocrinology volume: is there a neurobiology of love? http://cogweb.ucla.edu/Abstracts/NeuroLove_98.html

——————————————————————————————

Highlights:

possible pathway in the regulation of ovulation - stria terminalis to the amygdaloid complex in the monkey (Macaca fascicularis) - J Physiol. 1977

Characteristics of a ventral tract from the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BST) to the amygdaloid complex

from BST to the amygdala, and, since the neurones of BST contain estradiol, … this tract may be involved in the regulation of ovulation.

——————————————————————————————-

New data on serotoninergic mechanisms in ovulation in the cyclic female rat - C R Seances Soc Biol Fil. 1979

These results provide support to the specificity of action of serotonin in the control of ovulation in the cyclic rat. They also suggest an interaction of serotonin and oestrogens in this control.

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the hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal axis in the female rhesus monkey. - Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1993
inhibit the GnRH pulse generator

acute decrease in LH and FSH secretion.

This decrease in gonadotropin release may explain the deleterious effects of stress on the menstrual cycle. However, an acute decrease in gonadotropins following activation of the adrenal axis is not observed in the presence of estradiol.

Thus, during the menstrual cycle, a relative protection against the deleterious effects of acute stress may exist. How potent this protective mechanism is against repetitive stress is not known.

—————————————————————————————-

What is stress, and how does it affect reproduction? - Anim Reprod Sci. 2000

stressors such as milk fever or lameness increase the calving to conception interval by 13-14 days, and an extra 0.5 inseminations are required per conception.

a variety of endocrine regulatory points exist whereby stress limits the efficiency of reproduction

stressors interfere with precise timings of reproductive hormone release within the follicular phase

opioids mediate these effects

there is a level of interference by stressors at the ovary

Reproduction is such an important physiological system that animals have to ensure that they can respond to their surroundings; thus, it is advantageous to have several protein mechanisms, i.e. at higher brain, hypothalamus, pituitary and target gland levels.

However, when pushed too far, subfertility occurs.

…stressors interfere with precise timings…

And the stressors may even cause the Ms. to forget her daily measurement, in spite of which the pattern is discernible and interpretable in terms of “go/no go” or “safe/unsafe” as some may put it; we just say FERTILE or NOT and leave it to the user to decide… And yes, the indication of the fertile day number will also be provided.

——————————————————————————————–

The role of stress in female reproduction: animal and human considerations - Int J Fertil. 1990

Tonic, pulsatile gonadotropin secretion is inhibited by stress and by administered morphine, but morphine does not block the estrogen-induced preovulatory surge in primates.

Accordingly, impaired follicular development appears to be the most common cause of reproductive dysfunction attributable to stress in the human female

must take into consideration the many differences between the hormonal responses to stress in the human and laboratory animals.

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Development of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis - Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1997

Onset of puberty is associated with a greater increase in LH pulse amplitude than frequency

Only after the steep early pubertal increase in LH, ovarian steroidogenesis is activated, with increases in androgen and estrogen secretion. Under further FSH stimulation, follicular growth and maturation proceed. The first menstrual cycles are mostly anovulatory for 1 to 2 years. Luteal phase insufficiency is common the first five years after menarche.

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Hypothalamo-pituitary-gonadal axis in control of female reproductive cycle - Indian J Physiol Pharmacol. 2001

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion from the hypothalamus is pivotal to the regulation of reproductive physiology in vertebrates. The characteristic periodic secretion of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) from the medial basal hypothalamus (MBH), at the rate of one pulse an hour is essential for the maintenance of the menstrual cycle. These pulses are due to oscillations in the electrical activity of the GnRH pulse generator in the MBH.

The GnRH pulse generator is under the influence of an assortment of interactions of multiple neural, hormonal and environmental inputs to the hypothalamus. Hence, a number of conditions such as stress, drug intake, exercise, sleep affect the activity of this pulse generator.

Any deviation of normal frequency results in disruption of normal cycle. The cycle can become anovulatory in the hypothalamic lesions

—————————————————————————————–

Influence of the ovarian cycle on the central nervous system - Ther Umsch. 2002

In general, estradiol and testosterone exert a stimulatory, progesterone an inhibitory effect on neuronal activities which are mediated by excitatory (e.g. glutamate, aspartate), and inhibitory amino acids (e.g. GABA) and neuropeptides (e.g. beta-endorphin), respectively.

The pulse amplitudes are primarily influenced by estradiol, but neuropeptide Y, neurotensin and noradrenaline contribute to their preovulatory enhancement.

Despite of this, up to 20% of ovulatory cycles do not show any rise in body temperature.

It could be demonstrated that performance on tests of articulatory and fine motor skills are enhanced in the late follicular phase as compared to the menstruation phase, while spatial ability was better during menses. Estrogens may influence mood and well-being in a favorable manner, while in predisposed women progesterone may cause symptoms of premenstrual syndrome.

Somatic complaints (back pain, abdominal pain, breast tenderness) which are highest before and during menstruation, are probably associated with a lowered pain threshold due to a fall in the beta-endorphin levels in the CNS.

 

 

 

Stress and fertility

How stress affects the inherently narrow fertile window

Stress can do unwanted things to a woman and her menstrual cycle. In a nutshell, stress can make a woman completely infertile in this menstrual cycle (e.g., LPD, see below), or it can change the position of her fertile window (the time of ovulation included) within the menstrual cycle. Any of this can cause problems and lead to more stress…

The medical term is stress response, and it refers to the overall reaction of the organism to any adverse stimulus, whether it be of physical, mental or emotional kind, internal or external. The purpose is to adapt to challenge, and this goes on all the time. (C’est la vie! Real life is a never-ending series of stress responses.) Should the compensating reaction of the organism be inadequate or inappropriate, a pathological disorder may result.

The HPA axis, the immune system and the sympathetic nervous system are involved in the stress response. Don’t get stressed by some undecipherable abbreviations or unknown words — look up The Alphabet of bioZhena, you may find it or them there!

Just remember, this is no Alphabet of Ben Sira!

( /2007/11/28/the-alphabet-of-biozhena/)

It is a matter of conventional wisdom that perturbations in the external or internal environments - that is stress - can interfere with the normal course of the menstrual cycle. To further quote the expert, disturbances in the menstrual cycle occur in response to exercise and physical demands, stress and emotional demands, and diet and nutritional demands [citation below, as ref. 17].

As Michel J. Ferin writes, with reference to the brain component of the female reproductive control system, “with minimal reduction in (GnRH) pulse frequency, small undetected defects in the follicular maturation process may occur, whereas with a higher degree of pulse inhibition the follicular phase may be prolonged, and luteal phase deficiency, anovulation, and amenorrhea may develop.”

A micro-glossary: The follicular maturation process is also called folliculogenesis. GnRH is a brain-produced hormone involved in folliculogenesis. A maturing follicle is a small, protective sac, gland, or cluster of cells in the ovary, in which an egg (ovum) develops towards ovulation, in order to have a chance to be fertilized. For visualization see http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=ovarian+follicles&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2

Results obtained with our Ovulona prototypes to date lead to the conclusion that the technique appears to detect such phenomena as referred to by Dr. Ferin. This is not so much or merely the different rates of follicular maturation in different menstrual cycles, but more seriously the delayed ovulations in those cycles where it takes longer than 1 day to reach the ovulation marker trough (minimum), as observed in some non-baseline subjects’ cyclic profiles.

This is the detection of Ferin’s “minimal reduction in (GnRH) pulse frequency, small undetected defects in the follicular maturation process may occur”. Whereas, “with a higher degree of pulse inhibition the follicular phase may be prolonged, and luteal phase deficiency [LPD], anovulation, and amenorrhea may develop” - and, indeed, we have seen the LPD, the extended follicular phase and short luteal phase, and various other aberrations in the cyclic profiles of different women over the years.

bioZhena is basically involved with non-pathological stress responses through monitoring certain end-organ effects. Abnormal cyclic patterns of the end-organ effects may serve as an early warning of pathological disorders. This remains to be systematically investigated. Anecdotal evidence in non-baseline cyclic profiles to date is compelling.

For a hint of this, refer to these 5 slides: Five slides selected for bioZhena weblog

Watch them in the slide show mode. To get out of the slide show, you jerk the mouse… remember? (Remember this from the earlier Cervix post /2007/12/16/cervix-uteri-and-seven-or-eight-related-things/?)

You might read the Speaker Notes for the slides, too… (written for you!)

The non-baseline cyclic profiles present certain quantitative deviations from baseline: e.g., their post-ovulation (luteal) phase can be not of the normal length of about 14 days (12 to 16). In such abnormal cycles with short luteal phases (<11 days), observed more often in older women, there is a lack of synchrony due to a luteal-phase mismatch between the ovarian steroids and the pituitary peptides [S.K. Smith et al., J. Reprod. Fert. 75:363, 1985].

Here is an example of a non-baseline cyclic profile of a woman with a short luteal phase (8 days):

A woman’s history of amenorrhea and/or of ovarian cysts is pertinent to the case of short luteal phase, but so is stress and its effect on the GnRH hormone generator in the hypothalamus of the brain, which affects the output of the pituitary peptides.

For example, it is known in a general way that norepinephrine and possibly epinephrine in the hypothalamus increase the GnRH pulse frequency. Conversely, the endogeneous opioid peptides, the enkephalins and beta-endorphin, reduce the frequency of the GnRH pulses. These interactions are particularly important at the time of the “mid-cycle” LH surge, affecting its timing and intensity [W.F. Ganong, Review of Medical Physiology, 17th edition, Appleton & Lange, 1995, Chapter 23].

The slow rate of descent of the Ovulona signal - in slides 1 and 2 - from the short-term predictive peak to the ovulation marker trough (minimum) is a useful diagnostic feature that is indicative of an extended period of time required for the two “clocks” (the circhoral and the circamensual) to become synchronized as a precondition of ovulation.

Activation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis by physical, chemical, and psychological perturbations is known to result in elevated levels of serum corticosteroid hormones. Corticosteroids are the principal effectors in the stress response and are thought to be responsible for both adaptational and maladaptational response to perturbing situations. They have profound effects on mood and behavior, and affect neurochemical transmission and neuroendocrine control.

Cortisol, the predominant corticosteroid in primates, is often regarded as the “stress hormone” and consequently serves as a marker of stress. Cortisol can be measured in blood, urine, and saliva. For information about the adrenal gland and stress, go to http://arbl.cvmbs.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/endocrine/adrenal/index.html .

We logically mentioned stress in the post on Sub-fertility (or Reduced Fertility), in the following reminder. The endocrinologist professor Brown may be quoted: “Failing to conceive when wanted is stressful and therefore favours infertility. It should be remembered that, apart from a few conditions such as blocked fallopian tubes, absent sperm and continued anovulation, most couples will conceive eventually without help. However, the modern expectation is one of immediate results, and the main function of assisted reproduction techniques is therefore to shorten the waiting time for conception.” To which we would add that bioZhena aims to offer a more affordable and safer alternative to the A.R.T. approach.

References as excerpted from our White Paper:

[17] Michel J. Ferin, “The menstrual cycle: An integrative view”, Chapter 6 in [2], pages 103 - 121.

[2] Eli Y. Adashi, John A. Rock, and Zev Rosenwaks, editors, “Reproductive Endocrinology, Surgery, and Technology”, Lippincott - Raven, 1996.

Terminology reminder:

Luteal phase is the phase after ovulation. Follicular phase is the phase before ovulation. Referencing the phases of the menstrual cycle. Amenorrhea = abnormal absence of menstrual bleeding. GnRH = gonadotropin releasing hormone. See The Alphabet of bioZhena at /2007/11/28/the-alphabet-of-biozhena/

MENOPAUSE, HRT, AND BIOZHENA

For these and other terms, see the Alphabet of bioZhena at /2007/11/28/the-alphabet-of-biozhena/

You’ll find much more there under Menopause, HRT, and bioZhena.

 

The Ovulona^TM is an individual woman’s health monitoring tool, primarily responsive to her steroid hormone profile. As such, it may be expected to become useful for the management of menopause, and specifically for the individualization of HRT (hormone replacement therapy) or for the monitoring of the effects of any alternative approach to menopause management. See also under Hot flushes (or flashes) and under End-organ effect, below.

The concept of individualization of HRT has to do with the adjustment of hormone dosages, so as to minimize the drugs’ harmful side effects. The bioZhena technology is an objective and quantitative monitor of the effects of steroid hormones - whether endogeneous or exogeneous (own-body-generated versus administered). On this basis, it is expected to be a meaningful tool for menopause management, both in the hands of health providers as well as conceivably in the hands of the end-users themselves. Besides causing the Ovulona to become a widely used personal tool for women’s health management in the reproductive years, there is a good chance that the technology will naturally extend its usefulness into the post-reproductive years.

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT):

The use of synthetic hormones, particularly estrogen, to replace the menopausal woman’s diminished naturally self-generated supply of hormones. Prescribed to alleviate menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes, as well as to prevent osteoporosis. Menopause and HRT - initially as “estrogen replacement” or unopposed estrogen - did not come into vogue as a topic of concern for the medical profession until the 1960s, when chemical contraception was introduced.

It is interesting to note that in countries in Asia and South America, where women eat either wild yams or soybeans, which are sources of progesterone, the term “hot flush” does not even exist in their languages. They also rarely suffer from the host of female problems presently plaguing Western women.

It is a fact that an estimated 40 to 50 million American women are now 50, the approximate average age of menopause onset. We believe that the Ovulona will be useful in menopause management in general, and personalization of HRT in particular. The latter has to do with the minimization of side effects of HRT. With respect to that, note that the risk of developing breast cancer, particularly the lobular subtype, is elevated with ‘recent long-term’ use of hormone replacement therapy. This according to a report published in the February 2002 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

For more details, see Another study implicates HRT in breast cancer at http://www.lef.org/whatshot/2002_02.htm (and also http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3018930.stm, or google on HRT report risk of developing breast cancer).

See this April 2007 article at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?DR_ID=44377, which states that as a result of said report, millions of women ceased use of the drugs. Prescriptions for HRT declined by at least 38% in 2003 and by an additional 20% in 2004. Researchers found that in 2003 and 2004, 30,000 fewer women developed breast cancer than would have been predicted by previous trends, and the incidence of breast cancer reached its lowest rate since 1987. Researchers estimate that 16,000 fewer cases of breast cancer are being diagnosed each year because of the decline in HRT use, but experts argue that HRT should not be discontinued or abandoned.

HOT FLUSHES (OR FLASHES):

During the menopausal years, many women experience severe multiple symptoms, to a greater or lesser extent, depending on the individual. In fact, 70% of women experience hot flushes within 3 months of a natural or a surgical menopause. With some, the menopausal impact of estrogen deprivation can go unnoticed. The hot flush - or, medically, the vasomotor flush - is viewed as the hallmark of the female climacteric, experienced to some degree by most menopausal women.

The term is descriptive of a sudden reddening of the skin on the head, neck and chest, which is accompanied by a feeling of intense body heat and often by profuse perspiration. The duration varies from a few seconds (about 30) to several minutes, and rarely an hour or so. The episode ends usually in profuse sweating and a cold sensation. The hot flush frequency may be from rare to recurrent every few minutes, and the flushes are more pronounced at night or during times of stress. The disturbance of sleep results in fatigue, which may in turn lead to irritability, poor concentration, impaired memory, and other deterioration of quality of life. The vasomotor flushes are less frequent and less intense in a cool environment such as in winter months in the northern hemisphere. They can occur in pre-menopause, and are a major feature of post-menopause, lasting in most women for one or two years, but in as many as 25 - 50% of women for longer than 5 years. Unlike other aspects of menopause, hot flushes lessen in frequency and intensity with advancing age.

The physiology of the hot flush is still not well understood, but it apparently originates in the hypothalamus (in the brain) and is brought about by the decline in estrogen at menopause. Vasomotor flushes appear to result from a sudden lowering of the hypothalamic thermoregulatory set point. Activation of cutaneous vasodilation (increased blood flow into skin vasculature) causes an increased peripheral blood flow and thus heat loss, leading to a fall in core temperature. There are hormonal consequences as follows: About 3 to 6 minutes after the flush onset, epinephrine increases in blood (but not norepinephrine), and corticotropin acutely rises 5 minutes after the flush onset, leading to increases in cortisol (15 minutes), androstenedione (15 minutes) and dehydroepiandrosterone, DHEA (20 minutes). While luteinizing hormone (LH) increases and peaks about 12 minutes after the onset, growth hormone also rises, about 30 minutes after the flush. On the other hand, estrogen levels, as well as prolactin, FSH and TSH (follicle-stimulating and thyroid-stimulating hormones) remain stable during hot flushes.

The flush may be preceded by palpitations or headache, and is often accompanied by weakness, faintness, or vertigo. It is understood in gynecology that 10 to 25% of women report hot flushes before menopause, and that women are often treated unnecessarily with estrogen for this relatively common psychosomatic symptom.

In brief, the flush is not a release of accumulated body heat but is a sudden inappropriate excitation of heat release mechanisms. Its relationship to the LH surge and temperature change within the brain is not well understood. It is understood that the flushes are a consequence of the withdrawal of estrogens, rather than of hypoestrogenism (low estrogen levels) per se. The discontinuation of administered estrogens may also precipitate hot flushes, which may also be caused by the infertility drug clomiphene citrate (a nonsteroidal inhibitor of estrogen receptors in the brain).

Obese women tend to be less troubled by hot flushes (because they are less hypoestrogenic).

An estimated 40 to 50 million American women are now 50, the approximate average age of menopause onset, and so it is not surprising that there is much discussion about whether hormone replacement therapy (HRT, see above) causes breast cancer or whether natural hormone creams are effective. The average woman experiencing the onset of menopause can get lost in all the controversies — especially if she is already losing her normal composure because of distressing hot flushes and night sweats.

The bioZhena technology is expected to become a useful tool for the management of menopause, and specifically for the individualization of HRT or for the monitoring of the effects of any approach to menopause management. The concept of individualization of HRT has to do with the adjustment of hormone dosages, so as to minimize the drugs’ harmful side effects.

Alternative approaches include various uses of plant products with natural estrogenic and anti-estrogenic effects that balance and augment the body’s hormone levels. For example, in The Hot Flash Cookbook (Chronicle Books, 1997), author Cathy Luchetti shares her thoroughly researched and tested nutritional solutions for relief of menopausal symptoms. In “No More Hot Flashes!” ( http://216.205.123.2/whatshot/whatshot45.shtml ), Luchetti is quoted saying, “I couldn’t accept the very idea of HRT. I have never believed in pill-popping or other synthetic approaches to health. Yet, I had to do something, because I felt as if my once-dependable body and upbeat attitude were being chiseled away, bit by bit. And being a historian, I kept recalling all the Victorian stories of menopause that ended with the woman becoming ‘unhinged by the change of life.’ I refused to accept that as my fate.”

Luchetti’s words may be considered symptomatic of the attitude of many women today, and bioZh