Study Finds Testosterone Treatment as a Possible Substitute To Weight Loss Surgery
Data which span over 11 years propose that testosterone injections could be an innovative therapy for many obese men.
Data that span over 11 years propose that testosterone injections could be an innovative therapy for many obese men.
The study findings present that long-term testosterone treatment may be compared to weight loss surgery, with a reduced risk of complications.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 42 percent of adults in the United States are found to be obese. CDC also said that obesity is associated with several chronic health issues, including heart disease and diabetes.
Recent research findings that obesity may worsen results in COVID-19, too, have encouraged some governments to develop new public health approaches to entice people to lose weight.
Nonetheless, obesity is a complex problem with social and medical reasons, and attaining lasting weight loss can be a struggle for many individuals.
Meaning, study authors are looking for new approaches to help address obesity beyond just reducing calorie intake.
Data recently exhibited at the virtual European and International Congress on Obesity back the use of testosterone treatment to treat obese men. Specifically, long-term therapy reduced body weight by 20 percent on average.
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More than a Decade's Worth of Data
Bayer pharmaceutical firm and United Arab Emirates-based Gulf Medical University led the study using "11 years' worth of data."
Specifically, the study authors collected data from 2004 of more than 400 men who had functional hypogonadism or low testosterone production, and "obesity from a German urological practice."
From the data, roughly 58 percent of male respondents were given testosterone injection every three months for the study period. At the same time, the remainder opted not to undergo treatment and thus acted as controls. Each of the participants was aged 61.57 on average.
Medical staff managed and recorded all injections at the doctor's office, assuring that all respondents were given treatment in a consistent method. Reports on the study said no one among the participants quitted from or dropped out of the research.
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Weight Reduction by 20 Percent
The male respondents who received testosterone lost 23 kilograms on average or an equivalent of 20-percent body weight during the study period, while those who were not given the treatment gain six kilograms on average.
Consequently, body mass index or BMI correspondingly dropped by 7.6 points averagely in those who were given testosterone treatment, in comparison to a two-point increase in the control group.
Furthermore, the men treated with testosterone had less internal fat than when the study period concluded. Also, they have had a lower cardiovascular disease or CVD risk compared to those who were not given the said treatment.
In general, 20 percent of male respondents in the group control experienced a heart attack, and 27.2 percent suffered a stroke during the study period. No significant cardiovascular occurrences in the men who got testosterone treatment.
In a similar way, more than 20 percent of the control group had type 2 diabetes during the course of the study. Meanwhile, no one from the treatment group developed the said condition.
Bayer's Farid Saad, commenting on the study findings, said, "long-term testosterone treatment in hypogondal men" led to profound and sustained weight loss, which may have been contributed to reduced mortality rate and cardiovascular occurrences.
The Bariatric Surgery
Study authors also showed data particular to men, who were entitled to undergo bariatric surgery. This, according to research, is a surgical obesity treatment, encompassing "gastric band, gastric bypass and gastric sleeve surgery."
The study specified, too, that "rates of bariatric surgery are on the rise" in the United States, with over 250,000 individuals going through weight loss surgery "in 2018 alone."
More so, even though bariatric surgery is a proven approach to achieve weight loss, there are serious risks linked to the surgery, which does not have positive results always.
This part of the research comprised 76 men who had class 3 obesity or a 40 and higher BMI, which made them qualified for bariatric surgery.
From these more than 70 participants, 59 were given testosterone treatment and achieved a 30-kilogram treatment on the average.
These men's BMI dropped as well, by a 10-point average, which, the researcher said, "Could be enough to take them out of the highest obesity class," provided they had below 50 BMI, to begin with.
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Sep 21, 2020 08:20 AM EDT
