The symptoms are terrifying.
The ads are pretty common on television and the radio. Wiki doesn’t mention how common it is.
How expensive is the treatment?
The symptoms are not terrifying; you don’t get all the symptoms on that list.
I was having some of the symptoms a few years ago, and my endocrinologist ordered some bloodwork, which turned out to be positive. So every two weeks I have to go in for a shot. My testosterone level is normal now, but for whatever reason, the symptoms haven’t improved.
My brother also tested low, also gets the shots, and also still has the symptoms.
It’s a money-maker, quite simply. They call it “Low T” as to not get that suspicious sounding testosterone-word into people’s heads.
It seems to me that it would be prevalent, but I think it’s only because I have a thing for symmetry. Women are known for having hormonal imbalances, especially as they age. So it makes sense to me that men would go through something analogous.
But it DOES seem quite faddish. I can’t listen to the radio for five minutes without hearing an advertisement for some wonder testosterone enhancement.
That doesn’t mean the problem doesn’t exist; it only means that some people are profiting from it.
…and this is one of those cases where Wikipedia isn’t providing a complete answer. People with low testosterone may have some of those symptoms to some extent. Many people with low testosterone can go through their entire life perfectly happy and never notice a thing. Estrogen and testosterone have fairly wide ranges which are considered “normal” in humans, they can vary from month to month and day to day sometimes quite profoundly, and it’s very faddish to see one of the hormones being in the lower 50% of the population average and panic over it. The “low-T” commercials are selling to a subtle fear that I would suspect many American males have, which is “if you aren’t oozing testosterone out of every pore then you must be a goddamn twinkletoed communist cocksucking faggot,” to quote Gunnery Sergeant Hartman.
My endocrinologist has mentioned that he sees a lot of men in his office starting to demand immediate testing of their testosterone, saying such things as “gee, I sure get tired after work, I think I have low-T!” or even “I caught a cold last month, could that be low-T?” He absolutely hates those commercials.
The normal range of T1 and T2 in an average man ranges widely. What is normal in you might be low in another fella.
I have had my endocrine system crash about ten years ago. Since then I have been injecting myself with testosterone every two weeks. But in that time, testosterone creams and patches have become available.
I have to wonder if all this excitement on US TV is just a ploy to sell more of these new user-friendly forms of testosterone.
Do they use a blood test to diagnose it?
Yes, but to properly diagnose it you need a series of blood tests over time which show a consistent low hormone level, and IIRC there need to be some secondary symptoms present as well. Low testosterone scores absent of other symptoms typically aren’t much to worry about.
I have low T caused by the chronic use of narcotics to control pain. I give myself weekly injections of testosterone and with insurance the cost isn’t much. I pay a $6 deductible a month for the medication. As far as the symptoms I had were being tired all the time, gaining weight and a complete lack of a sex drive. The last one is the one that prompted me to inform my doctor that something was wrong. It was weird, an entire squad of NFL cheerleaders could have been in my bedroom naked and ready and I would have rather been reading SD. So of course I knew there was something wrong.
Fast forward to today, my weight it under control (hard to gain much weight now), energy level is better (though still very low because of the morphine), and my sex drive is as good or better than when I was 17!
I have been told by the doctor that because of the TRT my body will never produce testosterone again so this will be a life-long treatment. And to think I used to hate needles!
That’s a problem?
(slight hijack)…Man, you sure are on a lot of drugs. :eek:
Ain’t you telling the truth Brother. And to think I was never a drug user before I got hurt, now I get all the best stuff! Let’s take a quick look in the medicine cabinet shall we?
Morphine
Ritalin (started this recently in place of Aderall (amphetamine) to keep me awake. New insurance won’t cover Aderall, but will cover Ritlan)
Percocet
Soma
Lipitor
Terstosterone
And to top it off I am only 45. Wait until you see the list if I make 80! Let this be a lesson to everyone, don’t break your back, it ain’t fun.
I have obbn beat but this isn’t a “I take more narcotics than you”. I can verify for him that he is factual about low t. There are patches, androderm, gel, androgel, and injections, testosterone ciprionate depot, 100mg/ml or 200mg/ml. The depot means it lasts 10 days -2 weeks. The injetions are inexpensive so for many its the only choice. The downside of the injections is your testosterone goes from very low, to high, back to very low during that 10 days/2 weeks. With the gel or patches, its steady. They provide a very stable testosterone level day to day. THe down side being a month supply might be 500$ or so. Its a crap shoot whether insurance will cover it or not. My dr is good about writing a script for a vial and needles, so I can do my own shot every 10 days. Some make you go in for a shot. Depending on your condition or the distance, it could be very inconvenient. Low T like any other condition, you may or may not get all the listed symptoms you may have additional ones.
Its a fact men and womens bodys start to produce less reproduction hormones as they get into middle age. The post puberty levels are designed to reproduce and insure survival of the species. Its a fact. With todays longer life spans, even 100 yrs ago the life span was into the 60’s, 200 yrs ago into the 50/60’s, now its pushing 80. There will be things that come up like clinics for low T. It may or may not be a money making venture, but it is a medical necessity for some, and that is why you can go to your primary care dr or internal medicne dr for the tests/treatment of low t. you dont have to go to a clinic that advertieses on TV
Wow, I am sorry to hear you “win” at the game. I wish it wasn’t the way it is, but not much we can do about it. :smack:
My doctor gave me a Rx for the patch, but my pharmacist told me that even with insurance, my copay would be $300/month. I’m sticking with the injections.
Before all of the present day hoopla, I noticed a lack of libido. Just as a previous poster said, I just didn’t have any desire. I got tested which showed my testosterone was low.
When I heard this, I went looking for other possible symptoms: Lack of mental acuity? Check. Lack of ambition? Check, etc.
I was hopeful that the HRT would help with those symptoms, too. After taking the androgel for a short time, my libido came back. But the other symptoms weren’t helped. So I suppose those are due to normal aging, rather than low testosterone.
When discussing the options with my doctor, she said that the once every-two-weeks shots had an increased chance of serious side effects over the every-day-gel option. So I opted for the gel. I did try the Androderm for a short while, but I got contact dermatitis from the patches. So I went back to the gel.
So, if you’re thinking of HRT for a low libido, I’d definitely recommend trying it. Don’t expect it to solve other normal aging issues, however. (Of course, YMMV.)
J.
No one covered the lower risk factor of the Gel with me. Would you care to expand on the pro’s vs cons of the injections vs the gel?
My libido was non-existent, my temper short and I was depressed. Had my T tested and it came in under the “normal” range for my age.
I take androgel now. $28/monthly. Seems to help my libido so I’m going to stick with it.
I’m 45.
another anecdote - I describe the difference pre-post androgel as TV on “rabbit ears” vs HD TV over cable.
Severe fatigue was my major complaint when going to the doctor - who would ask if I felt ‘depressed’ - which I did not - but I did feel ‘tired’.
Diagnosed with Low-T - could tell the difference first day with Androgel, and things are like the fog is lifted.
So, FAD? not to me - but it is amazing the number of commercials I now see and go “yep - thats dead on the money”.
ETA - 45 as well - been fighting the symptoms for a couple of years, but in the past 6 months (pre treatment) it got noticably worse to me.