[Salivary testosterone levels in normal boys at puberty]

Area of Science:

• Endocrinology
• Pediatric Endocrinology
• Andrology

Context:

• Testosterone is a key androgen hormone influencing male development.
• Accurate monitoring of testosterone levels is crucial for assessing pubertal progression and overall health.
• Current methods for testosterone measurement can be invasive or costly.

Purpose:

• To evaluate the reliability and correlation of salivary testosterone (Salivary-T) measurements with serum testosterone (Total-T and Free-T).
• To analyze the age-related changes and diurnal variations of Salivary-T in normal boys and adult males.
• To determine the applicability of Salivary-T as a non-invasive biomarker for androgen status.

Summary:

• Radioimmunoassay was used to measure Salivary-T in 133 pubertal boys (8-14 years) and 21 adult males (24-36 years).
• Strong correlations were found between Salivary-T and both Total-T (r=0.54-0.59) and Free-T (r=0.77-0.84), indicating high reliability.
• Salivary-T levels increased with age, with the most significant rise at 13 years, and exhibited diurnal patterns (highest in the morning).

Impact:

• Salivary testosterone measurement is a highly reliable and non-invasive method for monitoring androgen status.
• This technique can aid in the clinical assessment of male puberty and hormonal health.
• The findings support the use of Salivary-T for routine clinical monitoring, potentially reducing the need for serum draws.