Enclomiphene, A New Treatment for small balls
Fifteen percent of couples will have difficulty conceiving and a male factor is involved in half of those cases. There are a number of possible underlying causes for male fertility problems. One of them occurs when the testicles have difficulty producing a normal level of testosterone. It is a condition called hypogonadism.
Hypogonadism is a disorder in
its own right, and can occur independent of fertility issues. Hypogonadisim
increases in incidence as men age.
Approximately 15% of all men 70 years of age or older will have clinical
hypogonadism including symptoms of low sexual desire, lack of energy or easy
fatigue, and loss of morning erections.
Hypogonadism has been
traditionally treated with one of several testosterone formulations. One
disadvantage of this is that administration of testosterone effectively
subordinates the testicle’s role in making testosterone and, by process of an
internal feedback loop involving the pituitary gland, the testicles will slow
down or halt both their endocrine and their fertility functions; in other
words, the testicles will stop or slow their production of both testosterone
and sperm.
·
IGF-1
·
thymosin
About Enclomiphene
Enclomiphene is a new
formulation of an older medication called clomiphene. Clomiphene selectively
binds to certain receptors in the pituitary, a master endocrine gland that
abuts the brain. Binding to this
receptor actually turns on the same feedback loop and leads to more stimulation
of the testes, leading to more testosterone production and sometimes, to more
sperm production.
Clomiphene, which is FDA
approved for use in female infertility, has been prescribed off label for men
for over thirty years. Certain compounds like clomid exist as isomers; that is
that they have two forms with the same molecular structure except that the two
forms are mirror images of each other, like a right and left hand. Clomiphene is composed of two isomers; zuclompiphene and enclomiphene.
There is speculation that use of only one isomer, enclomiphene may lead to
fewer side effects and make the medication more effective for men.
Enclomiphene Clinical Trail Results
Regardless of possible side
effects, an article on the September issue of Fertility and Sterility by Wiehle
et al reports on a clinical trial of enclomiphene on seventy-three men. The men were divided into four groups: Testosterone gel, enclomiphene 12.5 mg,
enclomiphene 25 mg and placebo. Result showed that enclomiphene could achieve a
similar testosterone level to the use of testosterone gel. Furthermore, the
study showed that the use of Tesosterone gel was associated with a decrease in
sperm production whereas enclomiphene
maintained sperm production in hypgonadal men.
·
HCG
·
BPC-157
Looking towards the future,
enclomiphene will almost certainly add to our armamentariaum of medications to
treat hypogonadism while maintaining sperm production. As to whether it will turn out useful
specifically in the treatment of male
infertility, it remains to be seen.

Comments
Post a Comment