The effect of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate on serum steroid concentration in singleton and twin pregnancies and its effect on cervical canal-ripening in singleton pregnancies.

Each of 20 pregnant women (greater than or equal to 39 weeks) was given an intravenous injection of various doses (50, 100, 200 and 400 mg) of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHA-S) and each of 5 pregnant women (greater than or equal to 39 weeks) was given glucose solution as a control. After the administration of DHA-S, significant increases in serum estrogen concentration, especially estradiol-17 beta concentration, and in the Bishop score were observed. The maximum increase in the level of estradiol-17 beta was significantly correlated with the doses of 50-200 mg of DHA-S. However, serum levels of estrone or estriol were not dose-dependently increased by DHA-S. Since the rate of conversion of DHA-S to estrogen did not necessarily seem to be dose-dependent, there may be some limitation regarding converted doses of DHA-S. There was a significant correlation between the increase in serum estrogen concentration and the increase in the Bishop score. Two hundred mg DHA-S were administered to 4 subjects pregnant with twins. Serum estrogen concentrations in these subjects were significantly higher than those in singleton pregnancies after the administration.