Testosterone is the primary androgen that plays a significant role in puberty, fertility, and sexual desire.Feeling foggy, flabby, and less than virile? Low levels of the male hormone testosterone could be responsible for how you feel and perform. Fortunately, there are several treatment options available for low testosterone.
Here are details on Low-T and the benefits of treating it sooner than later.
What Are the Symptoms of Low Testosterone?
Testosterone is mainly produced in the testicles and is the male hormone responsible for sex drive and for a man’s primary and secondary sex characteristics, such as body hair, enlarged muscle mass, deep voice, thick bones, and sperm/semen production, or fertility. When testosterone levels drop, these characteristics recede to one extent or another, producing noticeable mental and physical health impacts such as:
- Depression, anxiety
- Fatigue
- Mental fog and poor memory
- Smaller muscle mass
- Low to absent libido
- Infertility
About 45 percent of American men ages 45 and up suffer some effects of low testosterone due to physiological changes associated with andropause. Andropause is the male equivalent of the more openly discussed and treated female menopause.
However, besides mid-life andropause, other factors lead to Low-T–things such as obesity, diabetes, high stress, liver and kidney issues, HIV/AIDs, and malignancies and injuries to the testicles.
How Does Your Urologist Test You for Low-T?
Through a simple, in-office blood test, your men’s health specialist will discover how much testosterone is circulating through out your body and if your pituitary and other endocrine glands may be operating poorly. Your physician also will review your medical history and discuss any symptoms you perceive regarding sexual function and desire and changes in strength, energy, mood, and cognition.
What Are the Treatments for Low-T and Their Benefits?
After beginning a customized care plan to address low testosterone, a man can experience noticeable improvements in mood and concentration, and sex drive, including frequency and quality of erections. Also, muscle and bone mass significantly, but more gradually, increase. These improvements help men feel confidence and self-esteem both in their intimate lives and out in the world as well.
Your low testosterone treatments will depend on your personal goals and preferences, your overall health, and other factors your urologist will discuss with you. Common treatments are:
- Testosterone injections
- Topical creams or gels applied to the shoulders and thighs
- TESTOPEL sustained-release pellets implanted in the hips
- Oral medications (capsules that are swallowed or tablets held between the cheek and gums)
- Skin patches that deliver small amounts of testosterone over the course of days to weeks
Also, your men’s health doctor will help you address health issues that may be impacting your hormone levels–things such as excess body weight, poor nutrition, stress/anxiety, and high blood glucose levels.
Low-T Treatment in Gilbert and Phoenix, AZ
If you often feel tired, find your sex drive to be low, and have trouble concentrating and seek a lasting solution, look no further than our urologist and men’s health expert Dr. Avila at Ironwood Urology. Our highly skilled and trained men’s health expert has years of experience in treating a full range of men’s health conditions, including hypogonadism and low T.
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