Long-term testosterone replacement therapy reduces fatigue in men with hypogonadism.

BACKGROUND

Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) is one of the main lines of treatment for men with hypogonadism. This study sought to evaluate the influence of TRT in men with late-onset hypogonadism (LOH), regarding fatigue, coronary artery disease (CAD), carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and cardiovascular risk.

METHODS

This study compared men with LOH already on TRT for >1 year to newly diagnosed men with LOH who recently started TRT (controls). We included men aged >18 years with clinical manifestations of testosterone deficiency and testosterone levels of <300 ng/dL documented in two separate occasions.

RESULTS

A total of 33 patients were included in the study group and 30 in the control group. Mean age was 49.1 years (±11.5) in those already under TRT for >1 year and 45 (±12.2) years in the control group (=0.18). CAD was present in 14 (46.7%) patients in the control group and in 3 (9.1%) in the study group (<0.001). TRT >1 year was not associated with lower rates of CAD in multivariable analysis. Fatigue Severity Score was significantly higher in the control group (39.2±15.0), compared to TRT >1 year (23.5±8.1; <0.001). In a multivariable analysis adjusted for age and hypertension, TRT >1 year was associated with a 14.8-point decrease in Fatigue Severity Score (<0.001). Overall, there were no differences between the study group and the control group regarding cardiovascular risk (=0.31).

CONCLUSION

TRT for >1 year was associated with significantly lower fatigue scores. No differences were observed regarding CIMT, CAD and cardiovascular risk according to the WHO-ISH scale.