Estradiol levels in psychotic disorders

Estradiol has been postulated to constitute a protective factor for schizophrenia, which could provide women at risk to experience a psychotic episode with a relative protection in phases of high estradiol levels, i.e. before menopause and during the peri- and postovulatory phases of their cycle. Women suffering from schizophrenia have been reported to show significantly lower estradiol levels than the normal population and to experience first onset or recurrence of a psychotic episode significantly more often in low estrogen phases of the cycle with low estradiol levels. We examined estradiol levels in an open prospective study in 43 women admitted with a diagnosis of an acute psychotic episode and could confirm these findings for schizophrenia as well as other psychotic disorders. Only 28% of the women exhibited estradiol and progesterone levels indicating a peri- or postovulatory phase and all of the estradiol levels on admission were either within the lower part of the cycle-dependent normal range or below normal; comparison with a control group of healthy volunteers and patients admitted with different psychiatric diagnoses confirmed their estradiol levels to be significantly higher. However, when splitting this control group, the statistical difference would only hold between the study group of psychotic patients and the healthy control group. The group of patients with other diagnoses than a psychotic episode fell in between of the other two groups and did not differ significantly from either. Thus, an unspecific effect, i.e. a hypothalamic downregulation due to the stress of acute hospitalization must be born in mind when assessing hormone levels in acutely psychotic women. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.