Table of Contents
What does prolactin level mean?
Prolactin levels are normally high for pregnant women and new mothers. Levels are normally low for nonpregnant women and for men. If prolactin levels are higher than normal, it often means there is a type of tumor of the pituitary gland, known as a prolactinoma. This tumor makes the gland produce too much prolactin.
What happens if your prolactin levels are high?
High prolactin levels interfere with the normal production of other hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone. This can change or stop ovulation (the release of an egg from the ovary). It can also lead to irregular or missed periods. Some women have high prolactin levels without any symptoms.
What is prolactin levels in females?
Normal Results The normal values for prolactin are: Men: less than 20 ng/mL (425 µg/L) Nonpregnant women: less than 25 ng/mL (25 µg/L) Pregnant women: 80 to 400 ng/mL (80 to 400 µg/L)
What is the cause of high prolactin?
Hyperprolactinemia means you have higher-than-normal levels of prolactin in your blood. The most common cause is a prolactinoma, a benign (noncancerous) tumor in your pituitary gland. Certain health conditions and medications can also cause hyperprolactinemia.
What does a prolactin test show?
A prolactin (PRL) test measures how much of a hormone called prolactin you have in your blood. The hormone is made in your pituitary gland, which is located just below your brain. When women are pregnant or have just given birth, their prolactin levels increase so they can make breast milk.
What is normal prolactin level for age?
Can stress cause high prolactin levels?
Regardless of what the research says, stress does cause physiological changes within the body. It boosts adrenaline and cortisol. These stress hormones, in turn, inhibit the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). Stress also increases prolactin production.
Can high prolactin make you feel sick?
Nausea and vomiting. Problems with the sense of smell. Sinus pain or pressure. Vision changes, such as double vision, drooping eyelids, or visual field loss.
Does prolactin make you tired?
Rarely, the prolactinoma may press on the rest of the pituitary gland, stopping it from producing other hormones. This can cause symptoms such as tiredness, fainting, low blood pressure, low blood sugar or collapse.
What are the side effects of too much prolactin?
Symptoms of High Prolactin Levels
- Infertility, or inability to get pregnant.
- Breast milk leakage in people who aren’t nursing.
- Absent periods, infrequent periods, or irregular periods.
- Loss of interest in sex.
- Painful or uncomfortable intercourse.
- Vaginal dryness.
- Acne.
- Hirsutism , excess body and facial hair growth.
Is prolactin a stress hormone?
Prolactin (PRL) is one of the most versatile hormones known. It is considered an adaptive hormone due to the key roles it plays in the modulation of the stress response and during pregnancy and lactation.
What is a dangerous level of prolactin?
Prolactin causes the breasts to grow and make milk during pregnancy and after birth. Prolactin levels are normally high for pregnant women and new mothers. Levels are normally low for nonpregnant women and for men. If prolactin levels are higher than normal, it often means there is a type of tumor of the pituitary gland, known as a prolactinoma. This tumor makes the gland produce too much prolactin.
What elevates prolactin levels?
prolactin secretion varies with time, resulting in serum levels being 2-3 times higher at night than during the day. The levels of prolactin in normal individuals also tend to rise in response to physiological stimuli, including sleep, exercise, pregnancy and surgical stress (2)
What else could explain high prolactin levels?
Prolactinoma ( a benign tumor in your pituitary gland that produces too much prolactin)
What does elevated prolactin level indicate?
The increase in the prolactin in man may be related to the presence of tumors in the hypophysis gland, called prolactinomas, which is the gland responsible for prolactin production. However, increased prolactin levels are most often associated with the use of remedies, the main ones being: Antidepressants such as alprazolam, fluoxetine, paroxetine;