Testosterone Therapy After Coronary Angiography Linked With Adverse Outcomes

Coronary Angiography: What is it?

It’s a mouthful–coronary angiography–and you might not know what it means either.  Coronary angiography is fancy name to describe a medical test using dye and a special x-ray to show the insides of your coronary arteries.  The coronary arteries supply blood to your heart, so they are extremely important.  However, they can also become clogged with plaque making it difficult for the blood to travel through the artery and leading to an increased risk of heart attack.  A coronary angiography can reveal how clogged your arteries might be and lead doctors toward the appropriate care.

How Coronary Angiography Revealed the Risks of Low-Testosterone Therapy

So why are we talking about coronary angiography?  Well, it turns out that a recent study involving men over the age of 60 undergoing coronary angiography while on a low-testosterone therapy revealed the significant dangers of low-T treatments.  In fact, the results were so convincing that the FDA is reassessing the safety of low-T therapy.  In the study, men ages 60 and older were split into two groups–one group received the coronary angiography and low-T treatment and the second group only received the coronary angiography.  The results revealed that the men in the low-T treatment group were 30% more likely to suffer a heart attack, stroke, or death.

Low-T Treatment: The Risks Outweigh the Benefits

After the age of 30, testosterone levels start to decline in men.  However, they typically don’t reach a “low” point until the much later years in life and are associated with decreased fertility, decreased muscle mass and osteoporosis.  Although low-T commercials can be seen on TV almost any time of day touting their benefits, doctors urge patients to consider the benefits of using low-T and to compare them to the risks.  Not only can testosterone replacement have an adverse effect on the heart, it can also cause prostate enlargement.  There are many other “natural” ways to boost your testosterone such as losing weight, lowering stress levels, improving sleep habits, exercising and staying active, eating a healthy diet, and reviewing your medications with your doctors since some can lower testosterone.