Background: Symptoms of the "male climacteric" are often at least in part referred to an age-dependent decline of serum androgen levels.
Therefore, we evaluated the relationship of climacteric symptoms as assessed by the "Aging Males' Symptoms" (AMS) Questionnaire with circulating androgen levels.
Methods: 146 ambulatory men (age, 27-85 years) were surveyed with the AMS Questionnaire and sampled for serum values of total testosterone (tT) and sexual hormone binding globulin (SHBG). Free testosterone (fT) was calculated from tT and SHBG. A total AMS score ≥37 was considered pathological; the lower limits for tT and fT were set to 8 nmol/l and 180 pmol/l, respectively.
Results: A significant deficit in tT and fT was shown in 25 (17.1%) and 34 (24.5%) men, respectively; the AMS Questionnaire showed pathological results for 66 (45.2%) men. In predicting a tT deficit, the AMS Questionnaire rendered a sensitivity of 76% and a specificity of 61.6%, only. However, multiple regression analysis revealed a significant correlation of lowered tT with a pathological somatovegetative and psychological AMS subscore (p = 0.042 and p = 0.01) and a correlation of lowered fT with a pathological sexual subscore (p = 0.039).
Conclusion: In predicting hypogonadism the AMS Questionnaire in total did not render a sufficient diagnostic efficiency.
Written by:
Zengerling F, Schrader AJ, Cronauer MV, Stemann H, Schrader M, Rinnab L. Are you the author?
Department of Urology, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.
Reference: Aging Male. 2012 Dec;15(4):253-7.
doi: 10.3109/13685538.2012.729232
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 23078021
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