We have located links that may give you full text access.
Journal Article
Review
Macroprolactinemia: new insights in hyperprolactinemia.
Hypersecretion of prolactin by lactotroph cells of the anterior pituitary may lead to hyperprolactinemia in physiological, pathological and idiopathic conditions. Most patients with idiopathic hyperprolactinemia may have radiologically undetected microprolactinomas, but some may present other causes of hyperprolactinemia described as macroprolactinemia. This condition corresponds to the predominance of higher molecular mass prolactin forms (big-big prolactin, MW > 150 kDa), that have been postulated to represent prolactin monomer complexed with anti-prolactin immunoglobulins or autoantibodies. The prevalence of macroprolactinemia in hyperprolactinemic populations between 15-46% has been reported. In the pathophysiology of macroprolactinemia it seems that pituitary prolactin has antigenicity, leading to the production of anti-prolactin autoantibodies, and these antibodies reduce prolactin bioactivity and delay prolactin clearance. Antibody-bound prolactin is big enough to be confined to vascular spaces, and therefore macroprolactinemia develops due to the delayed clearance of prolactin rather than increased production. Although the clinical symptoms are less frequent in macroprolactinemic patients, they could not be differentiated from true hyperprolactinemic patients, on the basis of clinical features alone. Although gel filtration chromatography (GFC) is known to be the gold standard for detecting macroprolactin, the polyethylene glycol precipitation (PEG) method has offered a simple, cheap, and highly suitable alternative. In conclusion, macroprolactinemia can be considered a benign condition with low incidence of clinical symptoms and therefore hormonal and imaging investigations as well as medical or surgical treatment and prolonged follow-up are not necessary.
Full text links
Related Resources
Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university
For the best experience, use the Read mobile app
All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2024 by WebMD LLC.
This website also contains material copyrighted by 3rd parties.
By using this service, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.
Your Privacy Choices
You can now claim free CME credits for this literature searchClaim now
Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university
For the best experience, use the Read mobile app