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Survival highest among older men with mid-range testosterone levels
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Older men with mid-range testosterone and dihydrotestosterone levels were less likely to die of any cause, study results indicate.
Bu Beng Yeap, MBBS, FRACP, PhD, of the University of Western Australia at the Fremantle Hospital, and colleagues measured testosterone, dihydrotestosterone and estradiol levels in 3,690 community-dwelling men aged 70 to 89 years in Perth, Western Australia. Study participants were then divided into quartiles based on their hormone levels.
During a mean follow-up of 6.7 years, 974 deaths occurred, 325 of which were from ischemic heart disease. In fully adjusted analyses, compared with those with levels in the first quartile, all-cause mortality was significantly lower among men with total testosterone in the second (adjusted HR=0.82; P=.033) and third quartiles (adjusted HR=0.78; P=.01) but not in the fourth quartile.
Similarly, compared with those with levels in the first quartile, all-cause mortality was significantly lower in men with calculated free testosterone in the third quartile (adjusted HR=0.72; P=.001) and dihydrotestosterone in the third quartile (adjusted HR=0.76; P=.003) but not in the fourth quartile.
Data also showed that, compared with those with dihydrotestosterone levels in the lowest quartile, ischemic heart disease mortality was significantly lower in men with levels in the third quartile (HR=0.58; P=.002) but not in the fourth quartile.
The researchers found no link between estradiol and all-cause or ischemic heart disease mortality.
“Sex hormones are an important predictor of mortality in older men, but we haven’t determined if treatments to change testosterone and [dihydrotestosterone] levels can alter these outcomes,” Yeap said in a press release. “Additional research into these findings, including randomized clinical trials, could help identify ways to leverage this information to improve health in older men.”
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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