Long-Term TRT Leads to Progressive Weight Loss, Other Benefits
STOCKHOLM—Testosterone replacement therapy over 5 years is associated with progressive weight loss and waist size reduction in obese hypogonadal men, according to study findings presented at the European Association of Urology 29th annual congress.
The study, which included 164 men who completed 5 years of treatment with parenteral testosterone undecanoate, also had improvement in components of metabolic syndrome.
The mean weight of study participants decreased from 104.2 kg at baseline to 92.5 kg after five years of treatment, a statistically significant decrease, reported a research team led by Dany-Jan Yassin, MD, of Klinikum Braunschweig, Germany.
After 5 years, 96.3% of patients had lost any weight, 80.2% had lost 5 kg or more, 51.2% had lost 10 kg or more, 31.5% had lost 15 kg or more, and 14.2% had lost 20 kg or more. In addition, 3.7% of men had gained weight.
Study participants also experienced statistically significant declines in waist circumference and improvements in lipid profiles and blood pressure. Waist circumference, as a measure of abdominal fat, decreased from a mean of 108.6 cm at baseline to 99.0 cm after 5 years. Mean body mass index decreased from 33.1 to 29.4 kg/m2.In addition, mean fasting glucose levels decreased from 112.7 to 99.0 mg/dL and mean glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) values decreased from 6.7% to 5.6%. The mean total cholesterol level decreased from 264 to 212 mg/dL, the mean low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level decreased from 162.3 to 126.4 mg/dL, and the mean triglyceride level declined from 261 to 199 mg/dL. The mean high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level rose from 40.1 to 55.6 mg/dL. Mean systolic blood pressure decreased from 140 to 122.3 mm Hg and mean diastolic blood pressure decreased from 81.6 to 77.6 mm Hg.
[Editor’s note: This results of this study were presented as a poster, which won an EAU 2014 Poster Prize]