The effect of castration and estrogen therarapy on serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol.

The effect of castration on serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol was studied in 11 women with fairly regular menstruation. The HDL cholesterol levels before and one month after castration did not differ significantly. The effect of intramuscular estrogen therapy on HDL cholesterol was investigated in six castrated women. Ten days after injections of both 10.0 mg of estradiol valerate and 2.5 mg of estradiol benzoate plus 10.0 mg of estradiol phenylpropionate, HDL cholesterol was increased significantly. Fifteen days later, HDL cholesterol levels returned to the pretreatment values.