Health
AMH levels may predict menopause onset
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted May 19, 2008
The amount of antimüllerian hormone circulating in the blood may indicate the age a woman will become menopausal, according to a study in the June Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Researchers from the University Medical Center in Utrecht, the Netherlands, measured AMH levels in 144 healthy women and found that they correlated with a data set of the average age of this life transition.
"The results suggest that AMH reflects a woman's reproductive age more realistically than chronological age alone," wrote the authors.
AMH indicates the number of small follicles in the ovaries, and the authors suggest that this information may help couples, particularly those who delay childbearing until their 30s, plan accordingly.
Researchers cautioned, however, that this information may not be meaningful for younger women because this hormone does not decline early in reproductive life.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2008/05/19/hlbf0519.htm.
