Introduction: Epilepsy is a chronic disorder with a prevalence of 40 million worldwide. Seizure is one of the most common causes of admission to neurology emergency services. Seizures are influenced by physiologic variations in SEX hormone secretion during the menstrual cycle. Both estrogen and progesterone exert significant effects on seizure threshold. The aim of this study was to measure estrogen, progesterone, LH and FSH levels during the first hour after seizure.Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study. Based on statistical recommendations, we selected 49 epileptic patients with grand mal seizure referred to the Emergency Rooms bf Alzahara and Noor Hospitals, affiliated with Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, with a history of recent seizure. These patients were selected using the simple randomized method. Patients of both SEXes were selected and all women were in the mid-follicular phase of the menstrual cycle. Pregnant or menopausal women or those with any history of hormonal abnormality were excluded. Blood samples were obtained during the first hour after seizure and FSH, LH, estrogen and progesterone were assayed.Data were analyzed with EPI statistical software.Results: Thirty-six patients were men and thirteen were women. Twenty three of the men (69.9%) and seven of the women had increased levels of estrogen. Progesterone level had decreased in two of the men and increased in four of the women. Twenty-five of the men (69-4%) and seven of the women (53.8%) had decreased FSH levels. Twenty six of the men (72.2%) and eleven of the women (84.6%) had normal LH levels after seizure.Conclusions: Increased serum levels of prolactin and ACTH differentiate seizure from pseudoseizure. This study found that mean serum levels of estrogen increase and FSH levels decrease following seizure, while progesterone and LH levels do not change significantly.

Purpose: Saturated lights appear brighter than white lights of the same luminance. This is the Helmholtz–Kohlrausch (H–K) effect, and the phenomenon can be estimated by modeling achromatic luminance and saturation to total brightness. Current H–K effect models are different between women and men and are also more variable in women, which may be due to hormonal changes across the menstrual cycle (MC). Methods: Total brightness (B) and achromatic luminance (L) were measured across blue, green, yellow-green, yellow, and red hues. These data were measured along with salivary hormone levels for nine cycling women and seven oral contraceptive (OC) users at points representing the menstrual, peri-ovulation, and luteal phases. Results: Simple brightness/luminance (B/L) ratio estimates of the H–K effect did not differ by OC use or MC phase, but B/L ratios were higher for the red stimulus in cycling women than OC users during the luteal phase. Estrogen, progesterone, and their interaction predicted 18% of the variation in brightness for cycling women. For OC users, only estrogen could be fit to brightness models where it accounted for 5% of brightness variance. Conclusion: These findings first provide clear support for separating cycling women from OC users, particularly when examining long-wavelength mechanisms. Next, the interaction of OC use and MC phase on B/L ratios for the red stimulus adds to a rich history of long-wavelength mechanisms. Lastly, the current result amends previous brightness models with multiple hormone terms for cycling women but not OC users.