Low testosterone is a difficult condition to deal with. That being said, there are solutions.
Testosterone Replacement Therapy
Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) is a safe and effective way to combat the many debilitating symptoms of low testosterone, or “low t.” While some patients have become concerned that TRT may have negative effects on the heart, studies are now suggesting quite the opposite.
Low testosterone, clinically known as hypogonadism, is defined by the body’s inability to produce healthy levels of testosterone. Consequently, those suffering from the condition may experience hair loss, muscle loss, increase in body fat, lower libido, erectile dysfunction or even depression.
TRT and Cholesterol
Testosterone replacement therapy is often the solution for low t. As recorded in a Harvard health article, a correlation between low t and high cholesterol ultimately determined that TRT treatment seemingly had no ill effects on patients’ cholesterol.
“Men who receive [testosterone]-deprivation therapy for prostate cancer drop their testosterone levels nearly to zero, and when that happens, their cholesterol levels rise.
“Even within the normal range, men with the lowest testosterone levels tend to have the highest cholesterol levels.
“And when doctors from the Mayo Clinic reviewed 30 trials of testosterone-replacement therapy, they did not find any overall effect of hormone treatment on cholesterol levels, for good or ill.”
A study from the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute has since discovered that TRT treatment seemingly has a positive effect on those suffering from heart disease.
“The study shows that using testosterone replacement therapy to increase testosterone to normal levels in androgen-deficient men doesn’t increase their risk of a serious heart attack or stroke,” said cardiologist Brent Muhlestein, MD. “That was the case even in the highest-risk men — those with known pre-existing heart disease.”
“Although this study indicates that hypo-androgenic men with coronary artery disease might actually be protected by testosterone replacement, this is an observational study that doesn’t provide enough evidence to justify changing treatment recommendations. It does, however, substantiate the need for a randomized clinical trial that can confirm or refute the results of this study.”
In the end, TRT treatment and its effects on the heart and cholesterol are still being studied and the effects of the treatment concerning the matter are somewhat debated. However, studies concerning TRT treatment in testosterone deficient men have founded many minimal and sometimes positive effects for those suffering from heart disease or high cholesterol.
