The role of prolactin in luteal inadequacy: treatment of hyperprolactinaemia with bromocriptine.

Endometrial biopsy carried out in 628 women presenting for routine investigation of infertility showed that 268 had luteal phase deficiency and 46 of them also had hyperprolactinaemia, without evidence of any other cause of their infertility. These 46 patients were given treatment with bromocriptine, starting with a dose of 1.25 mg/day and increasing to 5 mg/day, depending on how well the drug was tolerated. Serum prolactin levels were assayed every month in all women who had not conceived and endometrial biopsy was repeated in those who had still not conceived after 3-months' treatment. The levels were shown to have decreased to within normal limits in all patients and 18 (39%) of the women had become pregnant, 13 of them during the first 3 months of treatment. No abnormality was detected in any of the babies. The remaining patients who did not become pregnant had normal prolactin levels and normal endometrial secretion after bromocriptine treatment.