Pituitary response to synthetic luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone in Prader-Willi syndrome, prepubertal and pubertal children.

Pituitary responsiveness to the intravenous injection of synthetic luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) was studied in a female patient with Prader-Willi syndrome and the response was compared with that obtained in prepubertal and pubertal subjects. LH-RH caused the release of minimal amounts of LH and FSH in Prader-Willi syndrome as compared with the LH-RH response of prepubertal and pubertal female children. From these observations it is concluded that hypogonadotropism in Prader-Willi syndrome may be due to a hypothalamic lesion associated with impaired or limited pituitary responsiveness.