Excretory Patterns of Urinary Free 11-Hydroxycortico-Steroids and Total Oestrogens Throughout the Normal Menstrual Cycle

Abstract

Summary The excretion of urinary free 11-hydroxycorticosteroids and total oestrogens was studied daily in morning urine specimens throughout the menstrual cycle of six normal women (age range 18–24 years). The follicular phase of the cycle was characterised by apparently random fluctuations in the excretion of urinary free corticosteroids. However, after the mid-cycle oestrogen peak there occurred a significant drop in corticosteroid excretion, which then rose to a peak eight to 10 days after ovulation and was synchronous with the second oestrogen peak during the luteal phase.