Dermovascular Actions of Certain Steroid Hormones in Castrate, Eunuchoid and Normal Men1

Abstract

Among the effects on somatic tissues of estrogenie and androgenic hormones, those involving the cutaneous blood vessels are particularly noteworthy. The evidence for this statement is both experimental and clinical. Clinically, both types of hormones have served to provide relief from flushes resulting from gonadal insufficiency. In this regard the actions are in part indirect, involving the central nervous system, and in part directly upon the blood vessels themselves (1, 2, 3). From the experimental standpoint, androgenic substances have been shown to alter both the amount of blood in the cutaneous vessels, and the ratio of oxygenated to reduced hemoglobin (4). In general, the quantity of oxyhemoglobin increases relative to the amount of reduced hemoglobin, following injection of testosterone propionate into castrate and eunuchoid men. As for estrogens, these have been found to dilate the smallest blood vessels of the rabbit's ear (5) and to increase the amount of acetylcholine, a potent vasodilator, in certain tissues such as the uterus of the rabbit (1, 6), and the nasal mucosa of rabbits and cats (7).