Prevalence of late-onset hypogonadism among middle-aged and elderly males in China: results from a national survey.
- Author:
Yi-Jun LIU
1
;
Xu-Bo SHEN
1
;
Na YU
2
;
Xue-Jun SHANG
3
;
Yi-Qun GU
4
;
Lian-Dong ZUO
5
;
Cheng-Liang XIONG
6
;
Zhen YE
7
;
Yuan-Zhong ZHOU
1
Author Information
- Publication Type:Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
- Keywords: Aging Males' Symptoms; calculated free testosterone; late-onset hypogonadism; middle-aged and elderly male; total testosterone
- From: Asian Journal of Andrology 2021;23(2):170-177
- CountryChina
- Language:English
- Abstract: This study aimed to propose an operational definition of late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) that incorporates both clinical symptoms and serum testosterone measurements to evaluate the prevalence of LOH in aging males in China. A population-based sample of 6296 men aged 40 years-79 years old was enrolled from six representative provinces in China. Serum total testosterone (TT), sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), and luteinizing hormone (LH) were measured and free testosterone (cFT) was calculated. The Aging Males' Symptoms (AMS) scale was used to evaluate the LOH symptoms. Finally, 5078 men were included in this analysis. The TT levels did not decrease with age (P = 0.59), and had no relationship with AMS symptoms (P = 0.87 for AMS total score, P = 0.74 for ≥ 3 sexual symptoms). The cFT levels decreased significantly with age (P < 0.01) and showed a negative association with the presence of ≥ 3 sexual symptoms (P = 0.03). The overall estimated prevalence of LOH was 7.8% (395/5078) if a cFT level <210 pmol l
