Ovulation in a postmenopausal woman

Abstract

Objective: To report the first documented case of ovulation in a postmenopausal woman.

Design: Case study.

Setting: University reproductive endocrinology and infertility clinic.

Patient(s): A 57-year-old woman, who had been postmenopausal for 3 years and presented with breast tenderness and was found to have laboratory and ultrasound evidence of ovulation.

Intervention(s): Laboratory evaluation and transvaginal ultrasound.

Main outcome measure(s): Ovulation in a postmenopausal woman.

Result(s): Laboratory evaluations revealed estrogen and progesterone consistent with an ovulatory pattern. Ultrasound revealed a thickened endometrium and a corpus luteum, both of which resolved after menses.

Conclusion(s): This is the first report of ovulation in a postmenopausal woman. This observation opens the door to new questions about the sensitivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis in menopause as well as about ovarian senescence.