Does anyone know if BCP's lower DHEA levels? That's my only elevated hormone level. I know some people take dexamethasone (something like that) which is a steroid that lowers the level, since it's produced in the adrenal gland. But would BCP's or Spironolactone also reduce my level?
Hi I would like to know the answer to this too but I was wondering if you would mind telling me why you want this to be lowered. Is it causing symptoms? I also have elevated DHEA and am awaiting an appointment at an Endorcrinologist to get some answers but if you wouldn't mind I'd greatly appreciate any info you can provide.
i have facial hair growth, and i'm assuming that the elevated DHEA is the cause of this, since it can be converted into testosterone. my testosterone levels were normal, when tested.
I am not positive but I think BCPs only work on the ovary... so they wouldn't lower DHEA (I thought it was DHEAS though?) But BCPs can raise the level of sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) which binds to active androgens in the blood stream and keeps them from having andogenic effects on the body... so there *could* still be a reduction in symptoms.
As for the spiro... I thought that it didn't exactly lower testosterone but rather kept it from being converted into a more potent form which then acts on the hair follicles, causing excess growth or loss... maybe it would also work with DHEAS? I had the odd experience while on spiro that I took it for a while, maybe a month, and I had excessive bleeding from it... so I went off and then I had regular 35 day cycles for a while. I kind of wonder if maybe the spiro prevented the excess testosterone in my blood from working on my ovaries, too, and the rest allowed them to work normally for a while? The whole PCOS thing is a complicated feedback system... the ovaries overproduce certain hormones which then make it harder and harder for them to work... so it's like the make the tesosterone AND the testosterone hurts them (stupid ovaries) so maybe the spiro broke the cycle somewhat... I don't know. And I don't know whether or not it would work if the adrenals were the issue.
Just trying to take a stab at this as no one else is answering.
Is there a reason you don't want to take the dex? I believe it is the drug of choice if the adrenals are the problem, and actually stops/slows the adrenal overproduction as oppose to just blocking the effects of that overproduction.
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"We've tried to wash our hands of all of this
We never talk of our lacking relationships
And how we're guilt-stricken, sobbing, with our heads on the floor
We fell through the ice when we tried not to slip..."
- the verve pipe
i heard dex has some pretty nasty side effects, so i'm kind of worried to try it. plus my doctor said my "adrenals are fine", and that my high DHEA-s level could be just a fluke. but i've had doctors telling me it was high for a long time, so i don't think it is a fluke. she told me that spiro blocks adrenal androgens too, but i'd rather the level be actually lowered, not just masked.
Well it the whole testosterone thing is a feedback loop - too much breeds too much - it's possible that blocking the effects of the tesosterone could result in a lowering. I really don't know how it all works. There are so many theories. But I do know I had results from the spiro (I think) long after I went off the spiro. Well for 4 months or so, at least.
Have you ever had a CT scan of your adrenals? Depending on how high the level is, sometimes you may have an adrenal tumor. That's one of the first tests they did on me over 10 years ago... yikes. I SO hoped I had a tumor... it seemed such an easy fix to remove it. Alas, no tumor. NOTHING conclusive as this was prior to the PCOS/IR/met breakthrough...
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DDs b. 3/28/08 To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. X2
"We've tried to wash our hands of all of this
We never talk of our lacking relationships
And how we're guilt-stricken, sobbing, with our heads on the floor
We fell through the ice when we tried not to slip..."
- the verve pipe
well, i know my DHEA level was over 400, but apparently not high enough to warrant a CT scan of my adrenal gland, at least according to my current doctor who isn't an endo. she tested my cortisol levels - but didn't do a stimulation test to check for adrenal hyperplasia. she said my cortisol test was enough to rule out an adrenal issue, but i'm not sure if i am going to take her word as the absolute truth. i'm definitely going to get a second opinion. really the ONLY thing i really care about right now is stopping any new hair from popping up on my chin or anywhere else i feel so terrible about this excess hair issue. it's not TOO bad yet, but it started rather abruptly, and got bad quickly. i'm feeling really hopeless about it. my brain keeps telling me it will only get worse until i'm a bearded lady who has to shave every day
Dhea 
i feel so terrible about this excess hair issue. it's not TOO bad yet, but it started rather abruptly, and got bad quickly. i'm feeling really hopeless about it. my brain keeps telling me it will only get worse until i'm a bearded lady who has to shave every day 
