Testosterone in Post Menopausal Women

An article in the medical journal Current Opinion in Obstetrics & Gynecology says that testosterone therapy is a promising option for treating women with HSDD (very low libido or desire)

Somboonporn W.Androgen and menopause.Curr Opin Obstet Gynecol. 2006 Aug;18(4):427-32.

From the article abstract:

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Androgen therapy is being increasingly used in the management of postmenopausal women. The most common indication is to improve sexual function. The aim of this review is to evaluate current knowledge pertaining to testosterone and sexual function in postmenopausal women.

RECENT FINDINGS: The change of testosterone levels during the menopause transition remains controversial. A correlation of endogenous testosterone levels and sexual function is still inconclusive. A Cochrane Review and recent randomized control trials have, however, consistently demonstrated that short-term testosterone therapy in combination with traditional hormone therapy regimens improves sexual function in postmenopausal women, particularly surgically menopausal women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder.

An adverse effect on the lipid profile has been identified which appears to be mostly associated with oral methyltestosterone. Data for other effects of testosterone and long-terms risks are lacking. Testosterone may act in a variety of ways in different tissues. This is, however, an area that requires further investigation.

SUMMARY: Testosterone therapy is a promising option for treating women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder after surgical menopause. Two remaining questions need to be answer: who is most likely to benefit from testosterone therapy and what are the long-term health risks?

Testosterone For Women Studies and News

Testosterone and Libido in Post Menopausal Women
Researchers writing in the medical journal Gynecological Endocrinology say that there is emerging evidence that androgens are significant independent determinants affecting libido and satisfaction, as well as mood, energy and other components of women’s health.

Testosterone in postmenopausal women
An article in the medical journal Current Opinion in Obstetrics & Gynecology says that testosterone therapy is a promising option for treating women with HSDD (very low libido or desire)

Testosterone enhances libido and decreases depression
Researchers reporting in the Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences say Testosterone enhances libido and decreases depression.

Schutter, et al. J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci.2005; 17: 372-377. Depression Administration of Testosterone Increases Functional Connectivity in a Cortico-Cortical Depression Circuit.

From the abstract: “Increasing evidence suggests that the steroid hormone testosterone (T) enhances libido and decreases depression. Even a single administration of T (0.5 mg sublingually) in healthy young women is sufficient to enhance physiological sexual responsiveness….” Read the abstract

Testosterone For Libido Loss In Women
September 19, 2005’s Washington Post reported “a position statement from the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) and published in its journal, Menopause,” that testosterone therapy may aid many post-menopausal women dealing with loss of libido. You can read the Washington Post article here.

Study: An overview of testosterone deficiency and supplementation in women.
Davis SR, Androgen treatment in women. MJA 1999;170:545-549.

The researchers state: “Women reporting loss of libido may find physicians insufficiently empathetic, and a biological cause for sexual dysfunction in women is rarely sought. However, it is gradually becoming more accepted that androgen deficiency in women may underpin a variety of symptoms and pathophysiological conditions and that, in selected women, androgen replacement therapy is of clinical benefit.”

“Testosterone insufficiency in women: fact or fiction?”
Guay, A, Davis SR. Testosterone insufficiency in women: fact or fiction? World Journal of Urology 2002;20(2):106-10.

The researchers state: “Androgen deficiency is a true medical condition in both pre- and post-menopausal women. The most important recommendation is to listen to the patient and consider androgen deficiency when the symptoms are present, even if they seem non-specific…Treatment with androgens has to be monitored carefully because of the possible harmful effects of excessive levels of testosterone.”

Bone Loss and Testosterone in Women with Anorexia Nervosa
A study is being recruited, Anne Klibanski, M.D., Principal Investigator, by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) to determine among other things if low dose testosterone will be a benefit in preventing bone loss in women with Anorexia Nervosa.

From the abstract: “Women with Anorexia Nervosa have been found to have low bone density. The study will determine whether administration of low doses of a natural hormone, testosterone and/or risedronate, a medication to help prevent bone breakdown will improve or prevent bone loss in this condition.”

Testosterone Beneficial for Libido and Cholesterol
Researchers reviewing the current medical literature on the role of Testosterone in enhancing libido in post-menopausal women say; “The available evidence is that adding testosterone to estrogen therapy, with or without progestin, appears to be effective in improving sexual function in postmenopausal women and is associated with a reduction in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol.”

The findings appear in The Cochrane Library, read the abstract and summary of this article .

HRT, Testosterone and Post Menopausal Women – Problems of Sexual Dysfunction
Researchers writing in the medical journal Maturitas say that HRT along with testosterone supplementation helps postmenopausal women who complain of problems related to intimacy.

Women, Testosterone and Cardiovascular Disease
Researchers writing in the medical journal Coronary Artery Disease say that their study “could suggest that the development of cardiovascular disease after menopause is due not only to estrogen decline but also to androgen decline.”

The Use of Testosterone with Estrogen and Progestogen and Its Effect on Breast Cell Proliferation

Researchers writing in the medical journal Menopause say “Addition of testosterone may counteract breast cell proliferation as induced by estrogen/progestogen therapy in postmenopausal women.”

Testosterone for Women

Testosterone is the male sex hormone, but, it is also an important sex hormone for women. A woman produces testosterone in her ovaries and adrenal glands and obviously produces a lot less than a man because women do not grow the muscles or facial and body hair characteristic of higher testosterone levels.

Girls begin to produce testosterone as they approach puberty for use as a precursor to estrogen. A woman will have peak testosterone levels in her mid-twenties and then suffer a steady decline to half those levels in her forties. In my practice, however, I frequently see some women in their thirties producing an insufficient amount of testosterone (especially after child birth).

Additionally, if a woman has a hysterectomy, testosterone levels can drop quickly and significantly.

Signs of testosterone deficiency in women:
1. Low or no sex drive
2. Lack of energy
3. Obesity, especially abdominal fat
4. Loss of muscle tone
5. Reduced bone mass
6. Increased fracture risk
7. Fatigue
8. Wrinkles
9. Hot flashes despite estrogen therapy

The importance of blood tests
Not all women in perimenopause or menopause will be testosterone deficient. Some of the symptoms listed above could be caused by other hormonal problems or health issues. This is why blood, saliva, or urine testing is so important and why self-medication with “testosterone enhancers” or Testosterone itself based on symptoms alone is dangerous.

We order a blood test for total testosterone, as well as free testosterone. While both levels are important to watch, we want to pay special attention to the “Free Testosterone” reading because it is the active hormone.

When a physician orders a total testosterone reading alone, it is possible to get back a “normal,” “within range” reading on a patient who exhibits clearly defined symptoms for testosterone deficiency. How is this possible?

Because most of the testosterone in the body is linked to proteins, the smaller remaining portion is “free” to make itself available to the cells of the body. Free Testosterone or the lack of it is most responsible for symptoms or alleviation of symptoms associated with testosterone. That is why monitoring its levels are so important in testosterone supplementation therapy.

Many scientific papers, some listed below, have cited the following benefits possible to women taking testosterone.

1. Increased sexual desire
2. Relief of menopausal symptoms
3. Reduction of bone loss / osteoporosis
4. Increased vitality
5. Reduced body fat
6. Improved skin tone by stimulating collagen growth
7. Enhanced “quality of life”

Testosterone supplementation risks
It is important to understand that not all women will benefit from Testosterone supplementation. The goals, realities, and risks of Testosterone supplementation should be discussed, at length, with your physician prior to onset of treatment.

Loss of Libido

Sexual activity and perceived health – middle-aged women
Finnish researchers asked women between 42-46 and other women between 52-56 years old, how important issues of libido and intimacy where to their quality of life. The reported their findings in Health and Quality of Life Outcomes.

Testosterone and Libido in Post Menopausal Women
Researchers writing in the medical journal Gynecological Endocrinology say that there is emerging evidence that androgens are significant independent determinants affecting libido and satisfaction, as well as mood, energy and other components of women’s health.

Testosterone in postmenopausal women
An article in the medical journal Current Opinion in Obstetrics & Gynecology says that testosterone therapy is a promising option for treating women with HSDD (very low libido or desire)

Older Men and Testosterone
From the study abstract: “Male hypogonadism is a clinical situation characterized by a low serum testosterone level in combination with a diversity of symptoms and signs such as reduced libido and vitality, decreased muscle mass, increased fat mass and depression.

Dr. Darrow Interviewed on KCAL-9
CBS News August 3, 2006

Desire, Arousal, and Satisfaction in Aging Women
Researchers writing ion the medical journal Minerva ginecologica examined issues related to aging and desire and arousal.

Male and Female Intimacy Dysfunctions
Researchers writing in the medical journal Lancet report on endocrine disease and male and female intimacy dysfunctions.

Intimacy, Urinary, and Depressive Problems In Women Who Have Partners With E.D.
Researchers writing in the medical journal World Journal of Urology say that FSD disorders, urinary symptoms and depressive symptoms are common in partners of men with ED.

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