Disorders of thyroid function and fertility disorders

: The treatment of young infertile women and women with menstrual cycle dysfunction by thyroid gland extracts and later by pure thyroid hormones led to improvement of their menstrual cycle and frequently also to desired conception. Therefore a functional connection between thyroid and ovary, i.e. an effect of thyroid hormones on ovarian reproductive function was assumed. However, till recently exact scientific evidence did not exist, which could explain the functional connection between these two endocrine glands. The scientific discoveries of the last years in the area of human reproduction (which continues in experimental work on the superfamily of steroid/thyroid receptors, which have been coded by protoonkogen c-erb-A variants), presented proof of the presence of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) as well as of T3-receptors in ovary and thus way of direct TSH- and T3-effect on steroidogenesis and oocyte maturation. The authors present scientific discoveries from recent years, which seem to be crucial for the explanation of the thyroid-ovary relation and present the treatment algorithm for practical clinical application of experimental knowledge of human reproduction.