Testosterone therapy improves the clinical response to conventional treatment for male patients with metabolic syndrome associated to late onset hypogonadism.
OBJECTIVE
Recently, the clinic characterization of the gonadic male function has been put in tight correlation on the pathogenetic level with the main variables forming the condition of metabolic syndrome (MS); probably the serum testosterone (T) concentration in males is to be considered as an additional parameter completely related to the traditional clinical-metabolic findings. Currently the matter of the substitutive hormonal therapy with androgens is apparently influenced by some important unresolved aspects: 1) who really benefits from the T therapy? 2) are the actual dosage methods of T reliable? 3) which vascular and metabolic targets are to be monitored during the T therapy?


METHODS
In an analytical longitudinal study, carried out 12 months long on 60 men (average age 58 years, range 54-63 years) affected by metabolic syndrome (MS) and combined hypogonadism late onset (LOH), authors have evaluated the clinical response (androgenic asset, non-invasive hospital monitoring of the arterial pressure, lipidic asset study, body composition and the biologic resistance to the insulinic action) after conventional medical therapy (insulin-sensibilizing and anti-hypertensive) and after substitutive hormonal therapy with testosterone (T) by transdermic way. A group of five patients with MS and LOH, not treated, was used as group of control.


RESULTS
The group of patients treated with T showed a profile of clinical response better than the group of controls.


CONCLUSIONS
In conclusion, the seric determination of T is useful to better characterize the dismetabolic patient at the moment of the first level active medical therapy planning on the controls of the main risk factors constituting MS, expressing a potential role of conditioning.
Endocrinology, Andrology and Internal Medicine Unit, Department of Biomedic Scieces, University of Catania, Garibaldi Hospital, Catania, Italy. sandrolavignera@email.it
S
S
La Vignera
A E
AE
Calogero
R
R
D'Agata
M
M
Di Mauro
S
S
Tumino
R
R
Condorelli
F
F
Lanzafame
C
C
Finocchiaro
B
B
Giammusso
E
E
Vicari
D017668:Age of Onset; D020249:Hormone Replacement Therapy; D006801:Humans; D007006:Hypogonadism / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D013739:Testosterone / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood / Q000172:deficiency / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D008055:Lipids; D013739:Testosterone