[Estrogens and the gonadal axis. Implications for women with schizophrenia].

Estrogens significantly influence the mental states of women and probably modulate many mental diseases. Concerning schizophrenic psychoses, there is increasing evidence for a protective effect of estrogens on the one hand and gonadal dysfunction and hypoestrogenism in many women with schizophrenia on the other. This results in the urgent need to pay more attention to the gonadal axis and estrogen status in women with schizophrenia, both in research and in practice.