ArticlePloS one2012
Prolactin secretion in healthy adults is determined by gender, age and body mass index.
Article in PloS one, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 50 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
50 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 115 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prolactin in Pregnancies Affected by Pre-Existing Maternal Metabolic Conditions: A Systematic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Pooled it
- Sex Differences in Serum Prolactin Levels in Children and Adolescents on Antipsychotics: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Current neuropharmacology · 2023Pooled it
- Disentangling secretory ambiguity and the limitations of classical thresholds in defining prolactinomas.Pituitary · 2026Article
- Hyperprolactinemia in Older Adults: A Narrative Review of Distinct Clinical Challenges and Management Strategies.Cureus · 2026Review
- Elevated prolactin and association with treatment resistance indicators in first-hospitalized schizophrenia spectrum disorders: a real-world cohort study.BMC psychiatry · 2025Article
- Concerning the circadian rhythms of prolactin, its secretion timing, and regulation of the affiliative mind.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2025Review
- Observational
- A long-lasting prolactin stimulates galactopoiesis in mice.iScience · 2025Article
- The Interplay of Prolactin with Inflammatory Nutritional Markers and NT-proBNP in Chronic Kidney Disease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Observational
- Plasma prolactin and symptoms of schizophrenia.Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996) · 2025Article
- Hormones, Age, and Erectile Dysfunction: Should Routine Testing Be Part of the Initial Evaluation?Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Neuropsychological complications of hypoprolactinemia.Reviews in endocrine & metabolic disorders · 2024Review
- Evidence-based definition of hypoprolactinemia in European men aged 40-86 years: the European male ageing study.Reviews in endocrine & metabolic disorders · 2024Review
- Effect of Age, Gender, Food Intake, Obesity, and Smoking on Serum Levels of Prolactin in Healthy Adults.Journal of personalized medicine · 2024Article
- Correlations Among Maternal and Infant Factors, Lead Exposure, and Serum Prolactin Levels During Lactation: A Cross-sectional Study in Indonesia.Journal of preventive medicine and public health = Yebang Uihakhoe chi · 2023Article
- Normative range of various serum hormonal parameters among Indian women of reproductive age: ICMR-PCOS task force study outcome.The Lancet regional health. Southeast Asia · 2023Article
- Increased serum prolactin level may indicate more migraine attack frequency.Brain and behavior · 2023Article
- [Determination of prolactin reference intervals in different age groups].Problemy endokrinologii · 2023Article
- Review
- A Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies on Prolactin Levels in Women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundProlactin (PRL) secretion is quantifiable as mean, peak and nadir PRL concentrations, degree of irregularity (ApEn, approximate entropy) and spikiness (brief staccato-like fluctuations). HYPOTHESIS: Distinct PRL dynamics reflect relatively distinct (combinations of) subject variables, such as gender, age, and BMI. LOCATION: Clinical Research Unit. SUBJECTS: Seventy-four healthy adults aged 22-77 yr (41 women and 33 men), with BMI 18.3-39.4 kg/m(2). MEASURES: Immunofluorometric PRL assay of 10-min samples collected for 24 hours.
resultsMean 24-h PRL concentration correlated jointly with gender (P<0.0001) and BMI (P = 0.01), but not with age (overall R(2) = 0.308, P<0.0001). Nadir PRL concentration correlated with gender only (P = 0.017) and peak PRL with gender (P<0.001) and negatively with age (P<0.003), overall R(2) = 0.325, P<0.0001. Forward-selection multivariate regression of PRL deconvolution results demonstrated that basal (nonpulsatile) PRL secretion tended to be associated with BMI (R(2) = 0.058, P = 0.03), pulsatile secretion with gender (R(2) = 0.152, P = 0.003), and total secretion with gender and BMI (R(2) = 0.204, P<0.0001). Pulse mass was associated with gender (P = 0.001) and with a negative tendency to age (P = 0.038). In male subjects older than 50 yr (but not in women) approximate entropy was increased (0.942±0.301 vs. 1.258±0.267, P = 0.007) compared with younger men, as well as spikiness (0.363±0.122 vs. 0463±2.12, P = 0.031). Cosinor analysis disclosed higher mesor and amplitude in females than in men, but the acrophase was gender-independent. The acrophase was determined by age and BMI (R(2) = 0.186, P = 0.001).
conclusionIn healthy adults, selective combinations of gender, age, and BMI specify distinct PRL dynamics, thus requiring balanced representation of these variables in comparative PRL studies.
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