TESTOSTERONE LEVELS IN WOMEN 15-70 ng/dL – PCOS ≤150 ng/dL – TARGET FOR TRANSGENDER MEN 300-1,000 ng/dL
PCOS is the most common endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age, with an estimated prevalence of 8–13%. The syndrome encompasses gynecological symptoms such as oligomenorrhea, amenorrhea, infertility; dermatological symptoms such as hirsutism, acne, alopecia; and metabolic complications such as prediabetes, type 2 diabetes, obesity, dyslipidemia, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), metabolic syndrome, and obstructive sleep apnea.https://lnkd.in/ejMHvuH5
Testosterone (both total and free testosterone) and androstenedione were the main elevated androgens and were diagnostic for excess ovarian androgens in the studied PCOS women, whereas dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) was not elevated and/or diagnostic for excess ovarian androgens in the studied PCOS women.
A total of 119 PCOS women were compared to 118 non-PCOS controls in this prospective study to determine the androgens elevated and diagnostic for PCOS. Total and free testosterone were significantly high in the studied PCOS group (92.5 ±9.1 and 5.7 ±3.6, respectively) compared to controls (44 .3 ±6.9 ng/dl and 2.5 ±2.8 pg/ml, respectively) (p = 0.001 and 0.003, respectively). Androstenedione was significantly high in the studied PCOS group (4.2 ±2.9) compared to controls (2.3 ±2.4 ng/ml) (p = 0.02), while there was no significant difference between the two studied groups regarding the DHEA (p = 0.99)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7258370/
PCOS is the most common endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age, with an estimated prevalence of 8–13%. The syndrome encompasses gynecological symptoms such as oligomenorrhea, amenorrhea, infertility; dermatological symptoms such as hirsutism, acne, alopecia; and metabolic complications such as prediabetes, type 2 diabetes, obesity, dyslipidemia, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), metabolic syndrome, and obstructive sleep apnea.https://lnkd.in/ejMHvuH5
If elevated androgens are responsible for many of the sequelae of PCOS what will the long term consequences be for young women whose testosterone levels are raised to male levels 300 -1,000 ng/dL?
To summarize: Testosterone induced complications of FTM transition include:
- Weight gain.
- Acne.
- Developing male-pattern baldness.
- Sleep apnea.
- A rise in cholesterol, which may increase the risk of heart problems.
- High blood pressure.
- Making too many red blood cells — a condition called polycythemia.
- Type 2 diabetes.