The role of prostaglandins in obstetrics/gynecology.

After a lag between the recognition of the biologic activity of material derived from seminal vesicles and the actual isolation and identification of prostaglandins, information on the structure, biosynthesis, physiology, and biomedical relevance of this family of substances has expanded explosively in recent years. Their ubiquitous presence in mammalian tissues has contributed to the intense interest in and investigation of their role in normal physiology and a variety of pathologic states. The availability of pure compounds of known chemistry, as well as of numerous agents that interfere with their production or metabolism, continues to allow unravelling of their regulatory influences, mechanism of action, and participation in disease processes. Understanding of the role of prostaglandins in reproductive physiology has led to widespread and effective applications in clinical obstetrics and gynecology, including menstrual disorders, therapeutic abortion, and labor. Their implication in the pathogenesis of toxemia of pregnancy, coupled with expanding information on the general role of prostaglandins in the regulation of hemostasis, has advanced understanding of hemorrhagic and thromboembolic disorders and opened innovative avenues for potential therapeutic intervention.