Is 3a,l7P-androstanediol- glucuronide a diagnostic marker in women with androgenic

a, 1 7~-androstanediol-glucuronide (Adiol-G)@ has been described as a marker oflocal androgen excess due to the increased activity of 5a-reductase in the cells of the hair follicles. In order to test the diagnostic value of Adiol-G, the serum level was compared to that oftestost- erone, free testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone suvate (DHEA-S), androstenedione and to the body mass index in 44 women with androgenic symptoms (Group I), 27 women with menstrual disturbances but no androgenic symptoms (Group II), and 48 healthy women (Group III) who served as controls. Adiol-G was sign$ icantly higher (7.8 k 5.1 nmol/l) in women with andro- genic symptoms than in the othergroups, but there was a considerable overlap. Serum testosterone was also found to be higher in Group I than in Groups II and III, respectively. There was a signijcant correlation between Adiol-G and testosterone, and Adiol-G and DHEA-S. No signijcant correlation could be shown to exist between androstenedione and Adiol-G. When Adiol-G and te- stosterone were simply classlfied as 'normal' or 'increased' (Adiol-G 9.4 nmol/l; testosterone > 2.4 nmol/l), higher than normal values of the former were found in the presence of normal testosterone in only 4% of the cases.