Testosterone therapy linked to weight loss in men

Long-term testosterone therapy may reduce weight, waist circumference and body mass index (BMI) in hypogonadal men who are overweight or obese, according to research presented at the Endo 2012 conference held recently in Houston, Texas, US. The open-label, prospective registry study included 255 men (mean age 60.6 years) with testosterone levels between 1.7 and 3.5 ng/mL who were given parenteral testosterone undecanoate 1,000 mg every 12 weeks for up to 5 years. Their mean body weight significantly decreased from 106.22 kg at baseline to 90.07 kg after 5 years (P≤0.0001). Mean waist circumference also significantly declined from 107.24 cm at baseline to 98.46 cm after 5 years (P≤0.0001), while mean BMI declined from 33.93 to 29.17 (P≤0.0001). The benefit was progressive over the follow-up period, said the researchers. Mean weight loss after 1 year was 4.12 percent, after 2 years 7.47 percent, after 3 years 9.01 percent, after 4 years, 11.26 percent and after 5 years 13.21 percent. At baseline, 96 percent of men had a waist circumference of ≥94 cm. This proportion decreased to 71 percent after 5 years. “It is clear that long-term testosterone treatment in hypogonadal men makes them lose weight,” said study author Professor Farid Saad of the Gulf Medical University, Ajman, UAE and head of Global Medical Affairs (Andrology) at Bayer Pharma. Adverse events and adverse drug reactions (ADRs) occurred in 12 percent and 6 percent of patients, respectively. The most common ADRs were increase in hematocrit, increase in prostate specific antigen (PSA), and injection site pain (all <1 br="br" cancer="cancer" case="case" no="no" observed.="observed." of="of" percent="percent" prostate="prostate" was="was"> Another study has confirmed similar benefits of testosterone therapy. The IPASS* study spanning 23 countries in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Australia, analyzed 1,438 (mean age 49.2 years) hypogonadal men who were overweight and were given a total of 6,333 injections of long-acting-intramuscular testosterone undecanoate over 9 to 12 months. [J Sex Med 2012; DOI: 10.1111/j.17436109.2012.02853.x] While their scores of mental and psychosexual functions (libido, vigor, overall mood, and ability to concentrate) improved markedly, mean waist circumference decreased from 100 cm to 96 cm. Blood pressure and lipid parameters were also favorably altered in a significant manner, said the researchers. After four injection intervals, the percentage of patients with ‘low’ or ‘very low’ levels of sexual desire/libido decreased from 64 percent at baseline to 10 percent; moderate, severe, or extremely severe erectile dysfunction decreased from 67 percent to 19 percent. At the last observation, 89 percent of patients were ‘satisfied’ or ‘very satisfied’ with therapy. “Keeping testosterone levels normal has clear health benefits for the male, other than sexual,” concluded Professor Peter Lim, urologist at the Gleneagles Medical Centre and head of the Society for Men’s Health Singapore.   *IPASS: International, multicenter, Post-Authorization Surveillance Study on long-acting-intramuscular testosterone undecanoate