Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Int J Impot Res. 2010 Mar-Apr;22(2):91-104. doi: 10.1038/ijir.2009.64. Epub 2010 Jan 21.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) affects men and women differently with women having a lower incidence and later onset of disease. Research has recently refocused interest on the cardiovascular role of androgens. The purpose of this review is to summarize the evidence available on the association between testosterone and cardiovascular health in postmenopausal women. Published studies relating testosterone and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) to CVD and its risk factors were reviewed. Studies included in this review suggest that increased androgenicity, characterized by high testosterone and low SHBG levels, is associated with an adverse CVD risk factor profile in postmenopausal women. However, evidence for an association with cardiovascular events is lacking and it is uncertain whether the observed associations with endogenous testosterone have clinical implications regarding the use of postmenopausal testosterone therapy. Large-scale, longitudinal studies relating testosterone and SHBG levels to cardiovascular risk factors and endpoints are needed to determine the temporal relationship between androgenicity and cardiovascular risk and to ascertain the long-term efficacy and safety of testosterone therapy in postmenopausal women.
心血管疾病（CVD）在男性和女性中的影响不同，女性的发病率和发病时间较晚。最近的研究重新关注了雄激素在心血管方面的作用。本综述的目的是总结关于绝经后妇女体内睾丸酮与心血管健康之间关联的现有证据。本文综述了与 CVD 及其危险因素相关的睾丸酮和性激素结合球蛋白（SHBG）的研究。本综述中的研究表明，雄激素过多，表现为睾丸酮水平升高和 SHBG 水平降低，与绝经后妇女不良的 CVD 危险因素谱相关。然而，目前还缺乏与心血管事件相关的证据，并且尚不确定观察到的与内源性睾丸酮的相关性是否对绝经后睾丸酮治疗的临床应用具有重要意义。需要进行大规模的纵向研究，以确定雄激素与心血管危险因素和终点之间的时间关系，并确定绝经后妇女应用睾丸酮治疗的长期疗效和安全性。
