SERUM IMMUNOGLOBULIN-E ARE RELATED TO MENSTRUAL-CYCLE

During a cross sectional epidemiological survey on a general populatio n sample, 596 fertile women underwent total serum IgE determination. T hey completed an interviewer-administered standardized questionnaire a nd were categorized according to their menstrual period, They were div ided into two groups: those from days 10 to 20, who were considered to be in the periovulatory phase, and those in the other phases. IgE mea n values were significantly different (p = 0.01) in the two groups: pa rticularly, lower IgE values were found in those in periovulatory phas e, after accounting for smoking habit and atopic status, By multiple r egression analysis, taking into account the independent effects of men strual period, age, smoking habit, hours of fast, skin prick test reac tivity and presence of cough, significantly lower IgE values in the pe riovulatory phase were found. We hypothesize the possibility that a de crease of IgE concentration occurs during midcycle: a reduced immune r esponse might facilitate the ovuli implantation. Further studies are n ecessary to longitudinally investigate the trend of IgE in the same wo men, as well as the distributions and the trends of other immunoglobul ins.