THE URINARY EXCRETION OF OESTRIOL DURING THE EARLY MONTHS OF PREGNANCY.

Abstract

ABSTRACT The urinary excretion of oestriol in women with normal pregnancies has been estimated by means of two methods developed by Frandsen (1963). Method I has a sensitivity of 0.5 mg/24 h of oestriol and method II a sensitivity of 25–50 μg/24 h. The excretion in 106 cases of threatened abortion was also investigated. It was found that abortion was almost inevitable if the excretion of oestriol was low, while 75% of the cases with a normal output continued to term. Often a discrepancy between the result of a gonadotrophin test and of the oestriol estimation was found. In such cases the oestriol estimation gave the most reliable guide to the condition of the pregnancy.