ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the physiological functions of the endocrine system, especially the regulation of blood glucose, the function of the thyroid gland and the hormonal regulation of the female reproductive cycle. It then considers the disorders and the pathologies associated with the endocrine system including diabetes, osteoporosis, post-menopausal symptoms and thyroid disorders. The chapter investigates the pharmacology, the action of the major drug groups used in the treatment of key endocrine disorders, for contraceptive purposes and reproductive dysfunction. The endocrine system, however, is not a tightly integrated system like the nervous system. As a consequence, their associated pathologies affecting blood glucose, bone, reproduction and thyroid function are also not interrelated. Therefore, to make the chapter more coherent, the author's group the pathologies and drugs into separate, discrete topics. The chapter discusses the one of the most commonly prescribed groups of drugs in the UK hormonal contraceptives.
