Therapy of Acute Intermittent Porphyria With Ovulation Inhibitors in Women

Abstract

Acute intermittent porphyria is a metabolic disease that is characterized by recurrent attacks. It mainly affects women and is biochemically characterized by excessive excretion of porphyrins and their precursors. The prognosis is poor. Patients frequently die due to cessation of respiration after surviving some attacks. Sometimes peripheral pareses occur that do not subside completely. An effective treatment is not yet known. Attacks of acute intermittent porphyria are often related to menstruation in women (1). Participation of female sexual hormones and/or gonadotrophins is discussed, therefore, as a possible cause of acute attacks. Because of the proved inhibition of the secretion of gonadotrophins by combinations of estrogens and gestagens we used ovulation inhibitors for the prophylactic treatment of acute intermittent porphyria.