Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2009 Sep;58(9):2027-31.
doi: 10.2337/db09-0031. Epub 2009 Jul 6.

Prediction of metabolic syndrome by low serum testosterone levels in men: results from the study of health in Pomerania

Robin Haring  1 , Henry Völzke, Stephan B Felix, Sabine Schipf, Marcus Dörr, Dieter Rosskopf, Matthias Nauck, Christof Schöfl, Henri Wallaschofski
Affiliations

Prediction of metabolic syndrome by low serum testosterone levels in men: results from the study of health in Pomerania

Robin Haring et al. Diabetes. 2009 Sep.

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this analysis was to assess the prospective association of serum testosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) levels with incident metabolic syndrome (MetS) in men.

Research design and methods: Data were obtained from the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP), a population-based prospective cohort of adults aged 20-79 years. Analyses were conducted in 1,004 men without baseline MetS defined by National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III guidelines. Testosterone and DHEAS were categorized by age-specific quartiles and Poisson regression models with relative risks (RRs) and 95% CIs were estimated.

Results: After a median follow-up time of 5.0 years, 480 men (47.8%) developed MetS. Testosterone levels decreased with increasing number of MetS components. Testosterone in the lowest quartile predicted MetS (RR 1.38 [95% CI 1.13-1.69]), particularly among men aged 20-39 years (2.06 [1.29-3.29]), even after adjustment for age, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, waist circumference, self-related health, and time of blood sampling. DHEAS levels were not related to incident MetS (0.99 [0.83-1.19]).

Conclusions: Low testosterone but not DHEAS predicts development of MetS in a population-based cohort of 1,004 men aged 20-79 years. Especially in young men aged 20-39 years, results suggest low testosterone as a strong predictor for incident MetS. Assessment of testosterone in young and middle-age men may allow early interventions in the general population.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

FIG. 1.
FIG. 1.
Means with 95% CI in the analytical sample (n = 1,004) for total testosterone levels according to zero, one, two, three, four, or more components of MetS at baseline by 20-year age-groups. To convert the values of serum testosterone to ng/dl multiply by 28.82.
FIG. 2.
FIG. 2.
Means with 95% CI in the analytical sample (n = 1,004) for DHEAS levels according to zero, one, two, three, four, or more components of MetS at baseline by 20-year age-groups. To convert the values of serum DHEAS to μmol/l multiply by 0.027.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Kaufman JM, Vermeulen A: The decline of androgen levels in elderly men and its clinical and therapeutic implications. Endocr Rev 2005; 26: 833– 876 - PubMed
    1. Laaksonen DE, Niskanen L, Punnonen K, Nyyssonen K, Tuomainen TP, Salonen R, Rauramaa R, Salonen JT: Sex hormones, inflammation and the metabolic syndrome: a population-based study. Eur J Endocrinol 2003; 149: 601– 608 - PubMed
    1. Muller M, Grobbee DE, den Tonkelaar I, Lamberts SW, van der Schouw YT: Endogenous sex hormones and metabolic syndrome in aging men. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2005; 90: 2618– 2623 - PubMed
    1. Laaksonen DE, Niskanen L, Punnonen K, Nyyssonen K, Tuomainen TP, Valkonen VP, Salonen R, Salonen JT: Testosterone and sex hormone–binding globulin predict the metabolic syndrome and diabetes in middle-aged men. Diabetes Care 2004; 27: 1036– 1041 - PubMed
    1. Kupelian V, Hayes FJ, Link CL, Rosen R, McKinlay JB: Inverse association of testosterone and the metabolic syndrome in men is consistent across race and ethnic groups. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2008; 93: 3403– 3410 - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

Substances