Endo+
Urine Serum Saliva Buccal Swab
Performed by: Genova Diagnostics
What is Endo+?
Endo+ is a unique profile that combines multiple hormonal assessments and synthesizes the information so the clinician can quickly identify imbalances.
Hormones are chemical messengers released by a cell, gland, or organ into the blood that elicit a cascade of physiologic responses by acting on specific target tissues. Over 50 hormones have been identified. They can be synthesized from cholesterol or peptides and amino acids.
Genova offers a variety of endocrine assessments to meet the testing needs of each patient. Their endocrine products assist the clinician in identifying hormone imbalances, hormone metabolism issues, and disease risk.
Reference ranges are based on healthy adult populations. Pediatric reference ranges are not available.
Clinicians can build an individualized hormone assessment for each patient choosing from six component profiles.
What is included on the Endo+ profile?
→ Sex hormones (saliva): progesterone, estrone, estradiol, estriol, testosterone
→ Sex hormones (serum): progesterone, estrone, estradiol, estriol, testosterone, SHBG, DHEA-S
→ Estrogen metabolism (urine): estrone, estradiol, estriol, 2-hydroxyestradiol, 2-hydroxyestrone, 16a-hydroxyestrone, 4-hydroxyestradiol, 4-hydroxyestrone, 2-methoxyestradiol, 2-methyoxyestrone, 4-methyoxyestradiol, 4-methoxyestrone
→ Adrenocortex Stress Profile: cortisol x4, DHEA
→ Thyroid Assessment: TSH, fT3, fT4, rT3, anti-TG, anti-TPO
→ Melatonin: melatonin x3
→ Add-ons:
- Serum: LH, FSH, androstenedione, prolactin
- Saliva: cortisol awakening response (CAR), secretory IgA
- Buccal swab: COMT (V158M), CYP1B1 (L432V + N4535S), MTHFR (A1298C +C677T), VDR (vitamin D receptor) genetic single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs)
These smaller component profiles are also available individually.
Hormone Feedback and Regulation:
Many hormones have a self-regulating system that involves a negative feedback loop, meaning once the hypothalamus senses that enough of the target hormone is circulating, production shuts down. If levels are too low, the hypothalamus will resume the production cascade. Genova’s hormone assays detect endogenous or bioidentical hormones versus non-bioidentical hormones. If a patient is taking non-bioidentical hormones, the negative feedback loop may result in lower levels of endogenous hormones. For this reason, Genova does not recommend testing in patients taking non-bioidentical hormones. Genova’s profiles assess target gland hormones (i.e., cortisol, sex hormones, thyroid hormones), and pituitary hormones (i.e., TSH, LH, FSH). Measuring both levels of the feedback loop helps to distinguish between primary and secondary causes of imbalance.
Patient Population:
Hormone imbalances can result in numerous symptoms and conditions. However, many of the clinical manifestations are nonspecific and are also present in non-endocrine disorders. The endocrine system is interconnected to many other organ systems in the body, making it difficult to differentiate the root cause of symptoms. For example, hallmark symptoms of cardiovascular disease may overlap with hormonal imbalances. Testing is important to determine if a hormonal imbalance is contributing to a patient’s symptoms. There are many reasons clinicians test hormones including:
→ Hormonal symptoms
→ Hormone supplementation
→ Risk assessment for cancers, CVD, etc.
Hormone Balancing Considerations:
Every person is unique and treating hormone imbalances must be tailored. Numerous modifiable and nonmodifiable factors influence hormone levels:
→ Age
→ Detoxification capacity and metabolism
→ Toxic exposures/endocrine disruptors
→ Physical activity
→ Medications
→ Diet and nutrient status
→ Stress
→ Infection
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