Aging with little testosterone in the blood could increase the risk of death in men. This is what emerges from a systematic review and meta-analysis that examined 11 studies on over 24 thousand participants, to clarify the link between sexual hormones, mortality and cardiovascular diseases in the male population as they age. The results of the work, conducted by researchers from the University of Western Australiain collaboration with colleagues from Australia, Europe and North America, are published in the ‘Annals of Internal Medicine’.
The analysis indicates that “only men with low total testosterone concentrations had a higher risk of all-cause mortality“. A “key” finding, according to the authors, is that “men with a testosterone concentration lower than 7.4 nanomoles/liter had a higher risk of all-cause mortality, regardless of “luteinizing hormone” levels. Lh. Men with a testosterone concentration less than 5.3 nmol/L had an increased risk of cardiovascular death.”
From the University of Washington, in an editorial comment, the research is described as “particularly valuable for its rigorous methodology”. It is in fact the first work of its kind to evaluate prospective cohort studies that used mass spectrometry to measure testosterone levels, considered the most accurate measurement method. Furthermore, for 9 of the studies examined, the authors obtained the raw data and reanalyzed the combined data. This has allowed for a more sophisticated analysis of findings from more research, producing more robust data on the association between testosterone levels and risk of disease and death.
#testosterone #older #adults #higher #risk #death #men #research
