Androgen deficiency syndrome is a commonly diagnosed condition. The aim of this study was to investigate common clinical practices of specialists in the field of sexual medicine regarding androgen replacement treatment for men and women.
Attendees of the 16th Annual Congress of the European Society of Sexual Medicine held in January 2014 in Istanbul, Turkey, were asked to participate in a survey during the congress days. A 24-item self-report, closed-question questionnaire was distributed. Three sections were accessed: sociodemographic data, professional background and personal practice patterns regarding androgen substitution in men and women. A total of 133 physicians (mean age 47 years; range 25-79) completed the survey. Responses were inconsistent regarding the lab tests used for primary evaluation of male androgen deficiency. The majority of participants (62%) recommended testosterone replacement therapy for symptomatic men with testosterone levels <8 nmol l(-1) (231 ng dl(-1)). Similarly, most physicians (88%) recognized a correlation between libido and testosterone levels in women. Only 42% and 53% reported they would prescribe testosterone to women with low libido, premenopausal and postmenopausal, respectively. This survey showed discrepancies among physicians regarding testosterone replacement therapy for men and women. International Journal of Impotence Research advance online publication, 11 February 2016; doi:10. 1038/ijir. 2016. 2.
International journal of impotence research. 2016 Feb 11 [Epub ahead of print]
L Lowenstein, A Shechter, H Porst, F Tripodi, Y Reisman
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Rambam Medical Center, Haifa, Israel. , Department of Family Medicine, Clalit Health Services, Haifa and Western Galilee District, Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. , Private Urological/Andrological Practice, Hamburg, Germany. , Institute of Clinical Sexology, Rome, Italy. , Department of Urology, Ziekenhuis Amstelland, Amstelveen, The Netherlands.