Major Breakthrough in Treating Female Sexual Dysfunction

Major Breakthrough in Treating Female Sexual Dysfunction.

Testosterone for the Lady.

Dr Andrew Rynne.

People naturally associate the hormone testosterone, also called androgen, with men. It’s what makes us so nasty, so aggressive, so driven, so bald, so hairy and so sex mad. Isn’t that so? What very few people don’t realise though is that testosterone also plays a vital role in female sexual functioning. To be healthy, a woman needs to have androgen levels of approximately one tenth of that of young men. This they produce in their ovaries and adrenal glands. It plays a part in many things of which sex drive or libido is but one.

It may go against the grain to associate testosterone with femininity. After all, in the main when compared to men, women are gentler, better at empathising, more intuitive and more patient than men with their raging testosterone. So how could they possible need this stuff that enjoys such bad press? Recent studies have shown that post menopausal women not only lack oestrogen and progesterone but testosterone as well.

This low level of male hormone in post-menopausal women can give rise to many undesirable consequences. Indeed it is now suggested that testosterone may be the “missing link” in the management of menopausal symptoms not otherwise responding to standard HRT. To date this in the main consisted of oestrogen and progesterone. Included here are hot flushes, depression, osteoporosis and the sexual dysfunctions of vaginal dryness, dyspareunia, anorgasmia and low or no libido.

So how much testosterone replacement do ladies need? The quick answer is not a lot. At most her optimum levels of androgen will be from one seventh to one tenth of that of men. So, if a man requires on average 50mg of testosterone delivered daily via a gel call Testogel, then a woman’s requirement will be one tenth of this or 5mg of testosterone daily. A handy way to think of this is that if a man uses one tube of Testogel every day then the same tube of gel should last a woman one week. A little “toothpaste” sized smear on the inside of her forearm every day should do the job nicely.

Doctors who “approve” of testosterone replacement therapy for women are still thin on the ground and some of those like to try and make things complicated. Blood tests, for example, to measure the levels of testosterone that a post-menopausal woman might have, are largely a waste of time and money. They contribute not a jot to the diagnosis. Likewise, expensive specially compounded “female” testosterone replacement therapy will do a lot more for the doctor’s bank account than it will for client’s wellbeing. There is nothing wrong with existing pharmaceutically manufactured androgen gels as given to men.

It is in practise quite simple. All you need do is ask yourself some simple questions: Do you have post-menopausal symptoms not relieved with standard HRT? In particular, do you have sexual dysfunctions like vaginal dryness and loss of libido? If the answer to this is “yes” then try some testosterone replacement therapy at a does of about one tenth of that for a man? Did that improve things for you? If yes then continue if no then discontinue. Now, isn’t that nice and simple? Why complicate things?

To find out more about Testosterone treatments available for women please visit www.doctorrynne.com

The Dark Side of Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT)

The medical profession remains split on the question of Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) and its value for older men. Those who are opposed to it in principle, as it were, will argue that TRT is dangerous and unnecessary and that low levels of circulating testosterone in older men is natural and should not be interfered with. That at least is what they will say in public. In private, anti TRT doctors will express serious reservations about increasing older men's libido and reduction their erectile dysfunction.
In fact, it is this very misconception --- that TRT is to do solely with older men's sexuality that may be subliminally militating against the broader uptake of this otherwise useful therapy. I say that this is a misconception because in my experience of treating older using TRT, increased libido or sex drive and reduction of erectile dysfunction are far from the predominant effects of testosterone replacement. This does occur of course but it is subtle and not at all pronounced.
Doctors who are opposed in principle to HRT for older men seem to ignore, or be unaware, of other potential benefits to this treatment that have nothing to do with a man's sexuality. Recent studies have shown that nasty, age related conditions like Alzheimer's, dementia, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease and the Metabolic Syndrome may all be positively effected by testosterone therapy.
For example, a recent article published in the Journal of Andrology (Vol. 30 No 5 Sep/Oct 2009) makes for very interesting reading indeed. This is the work of four highly respected scientists: Abdulmaged Traish, Farid Saad, Robert Feeley and Andre Guay. In a broad met analysis of all the work carried out into testosterone replacement therapy over the last ten years, these investigators concluded: "Androgen Deficiency (low testosterone) might be the underlying cause for a variety of common clinical conditions such as diabetes, ED, the Metabolic Syndrome and cardiovascular disease."

If this subject interests you, I recommend you read this paper it its entirety. It is available here at this article.
If you have any questions at all that you think I might be able to help you with, I am available through me website here at http://www.doctorrynne.com. 

Dr Andrew Rynne is a medical practitioner and writer. He has thirty years experience in treating Sexual Dysfunction but most particularly Erectile Dysfunction and Premature Ejaculation.