DOI: 10.2337/dc06-1426 © 2007 by the American Diabetes Association
Clinical and Biochemical Assessment of Hypogonadism in Men With Type 2 DiabetesCorrelations with bioavailable testosterone and visceral adiposity
1 The Robert Hague Centre for Diabetes and Endocrinology, Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Barnsley, U.K. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Professor T.H. Jones, Centre for Diabetes and Endocrinology, Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Gawber Road, Barnsley S75 2EP, U.K. E-mail: hugh.jones{at}nhs.net OBJECTIVEThe aim of our study was to assess the prevalence of clinical hypogonadism, based on both symptoms and biochemical available measures of testosterone deficiency, in men with type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSIn a cross-sectional study of 355 type 2 diabetic men aged >30 years, total and bioavailable testosterone, sex hormonebinding globulin, BMI, and waist circumference were measured and free testosterone was calculated. Overt hypogonadism was defined as the presence of clinical symptoms of hypogonadism and low testosterone level (total testosterone <8 nmol/l and/or bioavailable testosterone <2.5 nmol/l). Borderline hypogonadism was defined as the presence of symptoms and total testosterone of 812 nmol/l or bioavailable testosterone of 2.54 nmol/l. RESULTSA low blood testosterone level was common in diabetic men, and a significant proportion of these men had symptoms of hypogonadism. Overt hypogonadism was seen in 17% of men with total testosterone <8 nmol/l and 14% with bioavailable testosterone <2.5 nmol/l. Borderline hypogonadism was found in 25% of men with total testosterone 812 nmol/l and bioavailable testosterone between 2.5 and 4 nmol/l; 42% of the men had free testosterone <0.255 nmol/l. BMI and waist circumference were both significantly negatively correlated with testosterone levels in men, with the association being stronger for waist circumference. CONCLUSIONSTestosterone levels are frequently low in men with type 2 diabetes, and the majority of these men have symptoms of hypogonadism. Obesity is associated with low testosterone levels in diabetic men.
Abbreviations: ADAM, Androgen Deficiency in the Aging Male ED, erectile dysfunction FSH, follicle-stimulating hormone LH, luteinizing hormone SHBG, sex hormonebinding globulin
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||