As men age, as with changes in blood pressure, they gradually develop problems with testosterone secretion. By and large there is a decrease in production and this is more pronounced in those who are diabetic or overweight.
Low testosterone or ‘hypogonadism’ has in the past been regarded as an unimportant finding in the male. We now know however that if left undiagnosed and untreated, hypogonadism can lead to severe long term problems for men; such as cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, insulin resistance, reduced sexual desire and performance, depression, tiredness, lethargy and weight gain.
The aim of treatment is to treat the cause which may sometimes be due to other hormonal imbalances. Very often in the middle aged male however, treating obesity, inactivity and lifestyle accompanied by carefully monitored testosterone replacement can reverse the trend and improve health significantly.
At South West Andrology we carefully diagnose, monitor and treat testosterone deficiency as part of our male heath initiative. It is important to keep the testosterone in an appropriate physiological range, so that potential negative effects of overtreatment are not encountered.