For some men, it's 'T' time -- test or no test

Testosterone therapy increased threefold in 10 years

2013-06-04

(Press-News.org) GALVESTON, Texas — Prescriptions for testosterone therapy have increased significantly during the last 10 years, according to a study in the current issue of JAMA Internal Medicine conducted by researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch.

About 50 percent of the men in the study who had received testosterone therapy had been diagnosed as having hypogonadism, a condition where a man is unable to produce the normal levels of testosterone.

But the study also found that, among new users of a prescription androgen product, about 25 percent did not have their testosterone levels tested before starting the treatment. In addition, it's unclear what proportion of the 75 percent who were tested had a low level of testosterone.

Dr. Jacques Baillargeon, lead author of the study and an associate professor in preventive medicine and community health at UTMB, said that he believes this is the first national population-based study of testosterone-prescribing patterns. (See video of Dr. Baillargeon explaining main findings of the study.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy7yonOkksc&feature=youtu.be.

Using data from one of the nation's largest commercial health insurance populations, the researchers looked at more than 10 million men age 40 and over. They found that testosterone therapy increased more than threefold, from 0.81 percent in 2001 to 2.91 percent in 2011 in men over 40. By 2011, 2.29 percent of men in their 40s and 3.75 percent of men in their 60s were taking some form of testosterone therapy.

"This trend has been driven, in large part, by direct-to-consumer marketing campaigns that have targeted middle-aged men and the expansion of clinics specializing in the treatment of low testosterone — or 'low-T centers,'" said Baillargeon. He noted that the development of new drugs and improved delivery mechanisms, particularly topical gels, likely have contributed to the increases. Of the four delivery methods, topical gels showed the highest increase of use.

The study is significant, he said, because there is conflicting data on the short and long-term risks of testosterone therapy.

### The study's other researchers include Dr. Randall Urban, Dr. Kenneth Ottenbacher, Karen Pierson and Dr. James Goodwin. The study was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health.

The University of Texas Medical Branch
Office of Marketing and Communications
301 University Boulevard, Suite 3.512
Galveston, Texas 77555-0144
http://www.utmb.edu

ABOUT UTMB HEALTH: Texas' first academic health center opened its doors in 1891 and today comprises four health sciences schools, three institutes for advanced study, a research enterprise that includes one of only two national laboratories dedicated to the safe study of infectious threats to human health, and a health system offering a full range of primary and specialized medical services throughout Galveston County and the Texas Gulf Coast region. UTMB Health is a component of the University of Texas System and a member of the Texas Medical Center.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Musculoskeletal conditions, injuries may be associated with statin use

2013-06-04

Using cholesterol-lowering statins may be associated with musculoskeletal conditions, arthropathies (joint diseases) and injuries, according to a report published Online First by JAMA Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. While statins effectively lower cardiovascular illnesses and death, the full spectrum of statin musculoskeletal adverse events (AEs) is unknown. Statin-associated musculoskeletal AEs include a wide variety of clinical presentations, including muscle weakness, muscle cramps and tendinous (tendon) diseases, the authors write in the study background. Ishak ...

Vegetarian diets associated with lower risk of death

2013-06-04

Vegetarian diets are associated with reduced death rates in a study of more than 70,000 Seventh-day Adventists with more favorable results for men than women, according to a report published Online First by JAMA Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. The possible relationship between diet and mortality is an important area of study. Vegetarian diets have been associated with reductions in risk for several chronic diseases, including hypertension, metabolic syndrome, diabetes mellitus and ischemic heart disease (IHD), according to the study background. Michael ...

Early life risk factors and racial/ethnic disparities in childhood obesity

2013-06-04

Racial and ethnic disparities in children who are overweight and obese may be determined by risk factors in infancy and early childhood, according to a study published Online First by JAMA Pediatrics, a JAMA Network publication. Over three decades, the rates of overweight and obesity among children have substantially increased worldwide. In the United States, the prevalence is estimated to be 32 percent among children and adolescents, according to the study background. Elsie M. Taveras, M.D., M.P.H., now of the MassGeneral Hospital for Children, Boston, and colleagues ...

Use of flaxseed supplementation in the management of high cholesterol levels in children

2013-06-04

A study by Helen Wong, R.D., of The Hospital for Sick Children, Ontario, Canada, and colleagues examined the safety and efficacy of dietary flaxseed supplementation in the management of hypercholesterolemia (high levels of cholesterol) in children. (Online First) The randomized clinical trial included 32 participants ages 8 to 18 years with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels ranging from 135 mg/dL to less than 193 mg/dL. Participants were randomly assigned to either the intervention group or control group. The intervention group ate 2 muffins and 1 slice of bread ...

Interleukin 17F level and interferon beta response in patients with multiple sclerosis

2013-06-04

A study by Hans-Peter Hartung, M.D., of Heinrich-Heine-Universität, Düsseldoft, Germany, and colleagues examines the association between IL-17F and treatment response to interferon beta-1b among patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. (Online First) Serum samples were analyzed with an immunoassay from 239 randomly selected patients treated with interferon beta-1b, 250 micrograms, for at least 2 years in the Betaferon Efficacy Yielding Outcomes of a New Dose Study. Researchers measured the levels of IL-17F at baseline and month 6, as well as the difference ...

Staff who smoke cost companies thousands of pounds more to employ

2013-06-04

Employers have to pay around £4,000 more a year to employ a member of staff who smokes compared to a non-smoking employee, finds research published online in the Tobacco Control journal. US researchers found that several factors including absenteeism, smoking breaks and healthcare costs result in a greater cost to the employer for having a smoker on staff and this cost could help inform their workplace tobacco policies. The risks to a person's health from smoking include a higher risk of developing cancer, heart or lung disease and currently around 10 million adults ...

Surgery for obsessive compulsive disorder sufferers is safe and effective

2013-06-04

Around half of people with an extreme form of obsessive compulsive disorder responded well to a type of psychosurgery that proved to be safe and effective, according to research published online in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, & Psychiatry. Researchers from Canada have now recommended physicians should consider this approach in helping people with OCD who have not responded to any other type of treatment. Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychiatric disease which leads to anxiety-provoking thoughts (obsessions) causing repeated, time-consuming behaviors ...

Less than half of dying patients are placed on a nationally recommended care pathway

2013-06-04

Less than half of terminally ill patients are placed on the Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient (LCP) despite it being recommended nationally, concludes UK research published online in the BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care journal. Durham University researchers found that in many parts of England, staff may have limited training or support to use the care pathway, which is a model of care that enables healthcare professionals to focus on care in the last hours or days of life when a death is expected. The pathway was jointly developed by the Marie Curie Hospice ...

Enzyme from wood-eating gribble could help turn waste into biofuel

2013-06-04

Scientists have discovered a new enzyme that could prove an important step in the quest to turn waste (such as paper, scrap wood and straw) into liquid fuel. To do this they turned to the destructive power of tiny marine wood-borers called 'gribble', which have been known to destroy seaside piers. Using advanced biochemical analysis and X-ray imaging techniques, researchers from the University of York, University of Portsmouth and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in the USA have determined the structure and function of a key enzyme used by gribble to break down ...

Alzheimer's leaves clues in blood

2013-06-04

4th June 2013, Zaragoza, Spain – Alzheimer researchers in Spain have taken a step closer to finding a blood test to help in the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. With approximately 75% of the estimated 36 million Alzheimer's sufferers worldwide yet to receive a reliable diagnosis, the potential impact on the lives of possible sufferers, present and future, could be huge. Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative disease most frequently affecting the elderly. The most commonly associated symptom is a progressive loss of memory to the stage in which the patient is ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Increased avoidance learning in chronic opioid users

RODIN project, funded by the European Research Council through a Synergy grant (ERC-Syn), will invest 10 M€ to explore cells as the architects of future biomaterials