Testosterone deficiency & the safety of replacement therapy

Subject: Science and Technology

Section: Biology

Context:

Analysis of data from more than 3,400 patients with hypogonadism from 17 clinical trials found little evidence that testosterone treatment increases the risk of cardiovascular events such as arrhythmia, heart attack, and stroke, in the short to medium terms.

What is hypogonadism

Hypogonadism is a condition caused by the deficiency of the male sex hormone, testosterone, and a new study in Lancet Health Longevity looks at the short- to medium-term safety of testosterone treatment.
Risk factors include ageing (as testosterone levels decline with age), obesity and diabetes.
Worldwide, 2% of men aged over 40 are affected, and this is growing as the population gets older.

Treatment for Hypogonadism

Testosterone replacement therapy is the standard treatment for hypogonadism, which can cause sexual dysfunction, weakening of bones and muscles, and reduced quality of life.
Despite being widely used, the cardiovascular safety of testosterone treatment had so far remained unclear due to inconsistent findings.
Most previous clinical studies relied on aggregate data, rather than individual participant data and have not published details of individual adverse events.
Prescribing of testosterone for hypogonadism is increasing globally, but conflicting messages about its safety may have led to many patients not receiving the treatment.

Significance of new findings

Ongoing studies should help to determine the longer-term safety of testosterone but, in the meantime, results provide much-needed reassurance about its short-to-medium term safety.
Findings could have important implications for the treatment of men with hypogonadism worldwide.
The researchers found that testosterone significantly reduced serum total cholesterol, HDL, and triglycerides.