Endocrinology and Low Testosterone Treatment for Men

If you have been feeling tired or weak or have noticed a drop in your sex drive, you may have low testosterone. At the Men’s Wellness Clinic, we can help uncover the cause of your symptoms and offer treatments to help you feel like yourself again.

Men with low thyroid hormone levels often feel tired. Sometimes, they may also gain weight. Other symptoms include dry skin, constipation and feeling very cold.

Men with high thyroid hormone levels often have the opposite symptoms. They may feel hot and sweaty and feel like their heart is racing. They may lose weight. But like men with low testosterone, they may also feel tired.

Sometimes, men with thyroid disease also experience symptoms of having low testosterone, meaning they feel weak and may notice a drop in their libido.

No, testosterone therapy itself does not improve fertility. In some cases, it can even reduce fertility. If you are experiencing infertility, we can refer you to a urologist at the Men’s Wellness Clinic who can offer potential solutions.

Yes, men’s testosterone levels decrease as they age, but not nearly as much as estrogen levels drop in women after menopause.

But sometimes, there’s another reason for the drop in testosterone. Men’s testes may not be making enough testosterone, or there may be an issue with the pituitary gland, which “signals” the testes to make testosterone.

Being able to distinguish between a “normal” decrease in testosterone and low levels that would benefit from treatment requires expertise, which is available at the Men’s Wellness Clinic.

A slight decrease in testosterone levels with age is normal. In these men, testosterone is not likely to improve symptoms.

But if a man’s testosterone level is low enough to meet the criteria for hypogonadism, he will probably feel better taking testosterone. Typically, this takes a few weeks, although it may take a few months to find the ideal level of testosterone.

Testosterone therapy comes in many forms: injections, patches and gels. You and your doctor can determine the best option based on your goals and preferences.

Testosterone therapy can cause the prostate to grow, although it is not believed to cause prostate cancer. However, if a man has existing prostate cancer, it can cause the prostate cancer cells to grow.

When you come to the Men’s Wellness Clinic, we can help you understand the pros and cons of testosterone therapy.

Diabetes and pre-diabetes can cause erectile dysfunction and infertility in some men. Low testosterone is also more common in men with diabetes.

Many men with diabetes also have an overactive bladder and urinary incontinence. Treatment can improve these symptoms.

Being overweight or obese can affect the levels of a certain protein called sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) that carries testosterone and other hormones in the bloodstream. But that is only part of the picture. Doctors are still trying to understand how obesity, diabetes and sexual health are linked.

Some of the latest treatments include glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, also known as GLP-1 receptor agonists. These drugs, which were originally approved for treating type 2 diabetes, are also useful for weight management in some patients.