Abstract
Despite the myocardial prolactin (PRL) binding activity and the known effect of enhancing contractility in the isolated rat heart, little information is available concerning the cardiovascular consequences of hyperprolactinemia in humans. To elucidate the effects of chronic hyperprolactinemia on cardiac structure and function, twenty-four patients with isolated PRL-secreting adenoma and twenty-four controls underwent a complete mono- and two-dimensional Doppler-echocardiography. Blood pressure and heart rate were similar in the two groups, and no significant differences were observed as to left ventricular (LV) geometry between patients and controls. Resting LV systolic function was normal in patients with hyperprolactinemia, as shown by similar values of fractional shortening and cardiac output. Conversely, hyperprolactinemic patients exhibited a slight impairment of LV diastolic filling, as demonstrated by the prolongation of the isovolumetric relaxation time and the increase of the atrial filling wave of mitral Doppler velocimetry (58 ± 13 vs. 47 ± 8 cm/s, p < 0.05) with a subgroup of females (16%) having a clear diastolic dysfunction, and a worse exercise capacity (6 min walking test 452 ± 70 vs. 524 ± 56; p < 0.05). In conclusion, hyperprolactinemia in humans may be associated with a slight impairment of diastolic function, with an overt diastolic dysfunction in a subgroup of females which correlated with poorer exercise performance, in the absence of significant abnormalities of LV structure and systolic function.