PCSLearner,

Would you mind sharing with us your daughter's lab values? I am a member of a hormone yahoo group and I would be more than happy to run those by her to get their opinion on her values. One thing to keep in mind is that the current "normal range" for lab values, that was established by the FDA, is a statistical range that encompasses the normal range for every age group. In other words, they don't account for the different age groups when deciding what is normal and what isn't. Case in point, my Testosterone value came back at 345 with a normal range of 300-1100. Since I'm within the normal range, my GP dismissed it and told me it was fine. I then went to see a hormone specialist and he told me that my value was fine for someone in their 90's but at age 31, my value should be between 800-1100.

You are exactly right that hormones are the reason why teenage girls suffer more than teenage boys. This is actually a hot area of research right now. They are trying to figure out which hormones do what to the brain during normal functioning, injury and post injury. A guy actually noticed that women tended to recover better than men after a brain injury. This led him to discovering progesterone's protective effects on the brain.

As far as her hormones being corrected over time, it really depends on how badly (if at all) her pituitary gland was damaged (or if any other glands were damaged). If it wasn't and this is just her body processing the stressful event she encountered, then it probably will correct itself. If she did damage her pituitary gland (or other glands) beyond repair, then it probably won't be corrected and she'll need to go on replacement therapy for the rest of her life. However, the fact that she is still a teenager may throw a wrench in there. However, I'm not a doctor so I can't answer that question with certainty.

If you have the resources (insurance, money, time, etc.) then I would say that it is definitely worth further investigation. Contrary to someone's opinion on here, insurance will cover most of the testing and most of the hormone replacement therapy if your doctor diagnoses her with hypopituitary resulting from trauma (or something similar to that). I know a lot of people who have had their pituitary gland completely removed due to a tumor and their insurance companies pay for all of the testing and most of the hormone replacement therapy. The difference is that the cause can't just be from "old age," it has to be from a trauma or a tumor in order to get the insurance companies to pay for it.

Also, there is a clinic in California that specializes in hormone replacement therapy for people with brain injuries. The President of the company has even presented his case studies on national television. They are seeing great success from their patients after they begin their program. I don't think that you can consult with them over the phone; however, I do believe that your doctor can. For some reason, I can't post the link, but google this and you'll find it: tbimedlegal.

Good Luck!