Pathophysiology of Female Reproduction and Clinical Management

The female genital system is made up of dynamic organs that change during the woman’s life cycle. Ovarian cycle consists of the growth and development of the ovarian follicle, its bursting, and transformation into the corpus luteum with relative production of estrogens and progesterone. The normal menstrual cycle is the result of the integration of the primary neuroendocrine complex (the hypothalamus–pituitary–ovarian axis) into a control system regulated by a series of peripheral mechanisms of feedback and nerve signals that result in the release of a single mature oocyte from a pool of hundreds of thousands of primordial oocytes. Alterations of these mechanisms can lead to pathological conditions and affect fertility of patients.