Congenital hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism, induction of minipuberty, and future fertility

A 33-year-old man with Kallmann syndrome had received pulsatile GnRH as an infant for the treatment of cryptorchidism. As an adult, his treatment for fertility with gonadotrophins was unusually rapid compared with expectations, with a total sperm count of 25 million after only 12 months of gonadotrophin therapy. We propose that pulsatile GnRH treatment as an infant induced minipuberty and facilitated his successful, rapid response to therapy. We also propose that identification of the absence of minipuberty in infants with clinical signs suggesting congenital hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism (CHH) is an opportunity for intervention with pulsatile GnRH yielding benefits for fertility decades later.

Automated summary

This article reports a case of a patient with Kallmann syndrome who received pulsatile GnRH treatment during infancy, resulting in a rapid and successful response to gonadotrophin therapy in adulthood. The authors propose that pulsatile GnRH treatment in infancy induces minipuberty and can benefit fertility treatment later in life.