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Endocrine aspects of sexual dysfunction in men
Alvaro Morales1, Jacques Buvat, Louis J Gooren
1Department of Urology, Queen's Univerisity, Kingston, ON, Canada. moralesa@post.queensu.ca
The Journal of Sexual Medicine
|January 21, 2006
Summary
Endocrine disorders can impact male sexual function. This review offers expert recommendations on diagnosing and treating these conditions, focusing on hypogonadism and androgen therapy.
Area of Science:
- Endocrinology
- Sexual Medicine
- Men's Health
Background:
- Endocrine disorders affecting sex steroid hormones can negatively impact male sexual function.
- Sexual medicine encompasses the diagnosis and treatment of sexual dysfunction in both men and women.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide expert opinions and recommendations on the current understanding of endocrinologic sexual medicine disorders.
- To cover the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of these conditions.
Main Methods:
- An international consultation involved over 200 multidisciplinary experts from 60 countries.
- Recommendations were developed through a scientific debate process, grading evidence-based medical literature, and internal committee discussions over two years.
Main Results:
- Hypogonadism, a deficiency in serum androgen levels, can decrease sexual interest, erection quality, and quality of life.
- Diagnosis involves measuring testosterone levels (total, bioavailable, or free) and considering prolactin. Androgen therapy should aim for physiological testosterone levels, with mandatory prostate evaluations.
- Androgen therapy typically requires long-term management, including regular monitoring of blood levels and therapeutic responses.
Conclusions:
- There is a need for safe and effective treatments for endocrinologic sexual medicine disorders.
- Prospective, placebo-controlled, multi-institutional clinical trials are required to validate treatments.
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