TITLE:
Testosterone Levels Do Not Decline with Age in Healthy Men
AUTHORS:
Akanksha Mehta, Alexander Bolyakov, Raymond C. Sultan, Laurent Vaucher, Anna Mielnik, Joseph Kiper, Darius A. Paduch
KEYWORDS:
Testosterone; Aging; Hypogonadism; Reference Values
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Urology,
Vol.3 No.4,
July
22,
2013
ABSTRACT: Aim: To establish norms for reproductive hormones in healthy males with
normal urologic and sexual function, and to assess the change in reproductive
hormone levels with respect to age among healthy males. Methods: Healthy volunteers
aged 18 - 29 (group 1) and 45 - 65 (group 2) were recruited for enrollment in a
prospective study. Inclusion criteria comprised normal urinary, ejaculatory,
orgasmic, and erectile function, as determined by IPSS, MSHQ, and IEFF-15. Men
with history of chronic medical illnesses or chronic medication use were
excluded. Fifty men met the study criteria. Each participant underwent physical
examination and standardized serum hormone evaluation using ELISA and EIA
methods. Statistical analysis was performed using JMP 8.0 software (SAS
Institute Inc., Cary, NC), to compare hormone levels between
the two groups of men. Results: There were 25 men each in groups 1 (mean age 26) and 2 (mean age 51). Overall,
46% were Caucasian, 31% African American, 15% Hispanic, and 8% Asian. There was
no statistically significant difference in serum total T, SHBG, E2, or LH
between groups 1 and 2. Notably, the 95% CI for serum T levels for both groups
of men were considerably higher than commonly accepted lower-end cut-off
limits. Conclusion: Serum T levels
do not vary significantly with age, in otherwise healthy men with normal sexual
and urologic function. Furthermore, healthy men have much higher serum total
and free T levels than the lower-end reference limits provided by commercial
laboratories.