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The Testosterone Trials: What the Results Mean for Healthcare Providers and for Science

  • Medical Comorbidities (M Miner, S Parish and A Goldstein, Section Editors)
  • Published:
Current Sexual Health Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

The purpose of this review was to assess the results of the Testosterone (T) Trials with regard to their clinical and scientific implications.

Recent Findings

The T Trials investigated 1 year of T gel versus placebo in 790 men 65 years and older with unequivocally low serum T concentrations (< 275 ng/dl). Safety monitoring was performed for an additional year. Primary results were improvement over placebo for sexual desire, sexual activity, erection quality, physical activity, and mood. Vitality improved with some instruments, but not all. Improvement was noted in bone density and anemia. Coronary CT provided mixed results—coronary calcium scores were unchanged whereas volume of non-calcified plaque increased more in the testosterone group. There were no worrisome safety concerns. Major adverse cardiovascular events over 2 years occurred in 9 testosterone-treated men and 16 placebo-treated men.

Summary

The T Trials provide high-level evidence of strong, broad benefits of T therapy, without substantive safety concerns.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Men’s Health Boston, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, 200 Boylston St, Suite A309, Chestnut Hill, Boston, MA, 02467, USA

    Abraham Morgentaler

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  1. Abraham Morgentaler
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Correspondence to Abraham Morgentaler.

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Conflict of Interest

Abraham Morgentaler reports personal fees from Aytu, Bayer, Antares, Acerus, AbbVie, Endo, Besins, Pfizer, and Repros, and personal fees from BioTE Medical, LLC outside the submitted work.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

All reported studies/experiments with human or animal subjects performed by the authors have been previously published and complied with all applicable ethical standards (including the Helsinki declaration and its amendments, institutional/national research committee standards, and international/national/institutional guidelines).

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Medical Comorbidities

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Morgentaler, A. The Testosterone Trials: What the Results Mean for Healthcare Providers and for Science. Curr Sex Health Rep 9, 290–295 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-017-0135-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-017-0135-0

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