Androgen deficiency is a deficiency in the male body of the sex hormone, which is testosterone. This syndrome can manifest itself at any age. In adolescents, it is often expressed in late puberty. The young man may feel the absence of sexual characteristics of the secondary type. This is expressed in the fact that his physique is not formed, his voice remains high, the genitals develop very slowly, and in addition, the growth of body hair occurs with significant delays.
The content of the article:
Causes of the disease
Symptoms of androgen deficiency in men
Diagnosis of androgen deficiency
Treatment of androgen deficiency in men
Androgen deficiency
With age, testosterone deficiency problems can also manifest themselves, albeit less often. So, the patient sometimes feels a decrease in erectile function, sexual desire decreases. In addition, there may be a decrease in the growth of hair volume in the androgenic zones (armpit, face) and the mammary glands begin to increase. If you let the situation take its course, then the disease can lead to sad consequences — there may be a ground for psychological disorders, infertility, failures and irregularity of sexual life.
Causes of the disease
The main hormone in the male body is, of course, testosterone. Thanks to him, secondary sexual characteristics are formed, muscle mass begins to increase, an erection occurs. The level of testosterone depends largely on the development of the androgen-type skeleton, spermatogenesis and the distribution of adipose tissue.
The hormone is produced by organs such as the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. Testosterone fractions are distributed in the blood, and the hormone that is in the fractions called active is responsible for all the effects of testosterone on the body.
Do not forget that age-related changes occur in the pituitary gland and hypothalamus. Due to this circumstance, testosterone begins to be produced in smaller volumes. Some experts are sure that heredity can also play a role here — in many ways this explains the development of early testosterone deficiency.
However, a number of factors affecting the development and course of androgen deficiency are still well studied. These include cryptorchidism, various inflammatory diseases — these are diseases of the prostate gland, primarily prostatitis. In adolescents, the disease can be caused by a delay in the development of the genital glands. Age-related changes can manifest themselves in increased blood pressure jumps, and this can also lead to testosterone deficiency. This can also include diabetes mellitus, which means an increase in blood sugar levels above normal.
Various diseases can also provoke androgen deficiency in men. These include thyroid diseases, obesity, heart failure, chronic lung diseases, orchitis, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and HIV infection.
In many ways, the development of the disease is influenced by the lifestyle that a man leads. Sedentary lifestyle, lack of physical activity and sports, various bad habits can seriously undermine the condition of the whole body and provoke the appearance of androgen deficiency. Sometimes the cause of this phenomenon may also be hormone therapy, the course of which a man is forced to undergo due to any diseases.
Symptoms of androgen deficiency in men
The reproductive system in the male body reacts very sharply and immediately to the general progression of aging. A person begins to age physiologically, which means that the level of testosterone in his blood decreases. As a result, there is a decrease in sexual desire, after intimacy, ejaculation often does not occur, and the erection gradually weakens. Many men in this period of their lives notice that orgasm is no longer powerful in its brightness, it is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve it. If age-related androgen deficiency occurs in a timely manner, infertility associated with age and physiological causes is gradually observed.
The level of hypogonadism also largely affects the symptoms of androgen deficiency. So, a person can feel disorders of the vegetative-vascular system as a result of the same physiological aging. This is not always associated with the activity of the adrenal glands. However, an elderly man often experiences jumps in blood pressure, suffocation, blood flushes to the head.
With age, a patient experiencing androgen deficiency may notice that the hair on his face and neck begins to decrease in its growth, but there is some increase in the mammary glands. All these are manifestations of a deficiency of testosterone and other hormones. In addition, bone density also begins to decrease, osteoporosis develops, and this is fraught with fractures, which is characteristic of many elderly people when falling and accidental blows.
As testosterone in the blood becomes less and less, the patient becomes susceptible to oncological diseases. Problems with the prostate gland, diabetes mellitus, vascular atherosclerosis may begin.
Diagnosis of androgen deficiency
When diagnosing this disease, specialists, first of all, proceed from the complaints of the patient himself and the symptoms that he describes. Many people experience natural embarrassment in such conversations, so the doctor can sometimes conduct a questionnaire instead of a conversation.
As for laboratory studies, blood serum is studied here to find out what the current level of testosterone is, both general and active. A biochemical and general blood test is also carried out here, the level of globulin responsible for the activity of sex steroids is studied.
If a man is faced with the question of the occurrence of his disease, he must, in addition to the usual tests, undergo an examination to study bone density. The exact number and list of studies in such cases is usually prescribed by an andrologist specialist.
To determine whether there is an androgen in the serum, blood should be given in the morning on an empty stomach. It must be remembered that it is in the morning that androgen is most concentrated in the body. As for active testosterone in general, the doctor makes a conclusion about the presence of androgen deficiency based on the concentration of this hormone. The blood serum can contain up to 12 nmol/ l of total testosterone, and this indicator is normal. However, sometimes there may be a difference in the levels of active and total testosterone.
Often, during the diagnosis process, the patient is offered to undergo a pelvic ultrasound to understand the condition of the prostate gland. Rectal palpation examination is also used and urine analysis is performed.
Treatment of androgen deficiency in men
Most often, the treatment of the disease in men consists in the appointment of substitution therapy. Testosterone preparations are used here. However, in order to prescribe therapeutic substitution measures to a patient, the doctor must be completely sure that the patient is not ill with prostate cancer. To avoid such a problem, it is necessary to be diagnosed upon reaching the age of 40, since the risk of prostate carcinoma increases as testosterone decreases. Any substitution therapy can worsen the condition. Therefore, it is important to undergo a preliminary examination for the absence of cancer cells in the body.
In order for the result to be positive, treatment should be carried out until testosterone accumulates in the body in the right amount. In addition, it will also be necessary to ensure that there is no lack of hormone. Doctors say that the safety of substitution procedures is guaranteed, and there are no side effects of such therapy. Due to this circumstance, a man with premature androgen deficiency can still feel at ease and lead an active lifestyle.
Testosterone can be injected into the body in several ways. Today, medicine can offer many forms by which the hormone will be in the male body. First of all, these are, of course, tablets, as well as oil—based solutions – such solutions are injected intramuscularly.
