madman
Super Moderator
HCG: OPTIMIZING BODY COMPOSITION IN MEN WITH ANDROGEN DEFICIENCY SECONDARY TO HYPOGONADOTROPIC HYPOGONADISM
Florence Comite, Madeleine Heard, Emma Bednarski, Aalin Izhar
Objective: Precision Medicine utilizing N-of-1 can detect, predict, stop, and reverse aging and disease to optimize the healthspan. Testosterone, a key biomarker related to disorders of aging, declines in men in the thirties, correlating with increased fat mass and decreased muscle mass. Conventional medicine treats this condition with synthetic steroid testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), suppressing physiological testosterone production and undermining the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular signaling pathway. In contrast, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is a peptide hormone that stimulates Leydig cells to produce testosterone. In this study, hCG’s impact on various body composition markers was analyzed.
Methods: Inclusion criteria for this retrospective cohort study were males aged≥29 years who underwent DXA scans prior to hCG and at 10-25 months (except for one 4-month follow-up). The three primary outcomes were subtotal fat mass (SFM), subtotal lean mass (SLM), and percent body fat (PBF), measured at baseline and follow-up DXA scans. P-values were generated using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests on R Studio (v3.6.1).
Results: The 33-patient cohort was 85% Caucasian and ranged in age from 29-75 years (mean=55 years). The mean follow-up period was 14 months. Overall, the median of SFM and PBF decreased from baseline by 2480.2g (p<.001) and 2.5% (p<.0001), respectively. SLM increased by 1313.3g (p=.012).
Discussion: These findings demonstrate hCG’s efficacy in optimizing body composition in males presenting with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. In conjunction, precision biomarkers with N-of-1 analysis allow for personalized actionable interventions. Therapy with hCG should be considered in men with a diagnosis of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism independent of age.
These preliminary findings will also address hCG dosing regimens and key biomarkers, currently undergoing analysis. Assessment of a larger, more ethnically diverse cohort treated with hCG for 5 to 10 years is underway to report short and long-term impact on body composition, as well as other variables.
Florence Comite, Madeleine Heard, Emma Bednarski, Aalin Izhar
Objective: Precision Medicine utilizing N-of-1 can detect, predict, stop, and reverse aging and disease to optimize the healthspan. Testosterone, a key biomarker related to disorders of aging, declines in men in the thirties, correlating with increased fat mass and decreased muscle mass. Conventional medicine treats this condition with synthetic steroid testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), suppressing physiological testosterone production and undermining the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular signaling pathway. In contrast, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is a peptide hormone that stimulates Leydig cells to produce testosterone. In this study, hCG’s impact on various body composition markers was analyzed.
Methods: Inclusion criteria for this retrospective cohort study were males aged≥29 years who underwent DXA scans prior to hCG and at 10-25 months (except for one 4-month follow-up). The three primary outcomes were subtotal fat mass (SFM), subtotal lean mass (SLM), and percent body fat (PBF), measured at baseline and follow-up DXA scans. P-values were generated using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests on R Studio (v3.6.1).
Results: The 33-patient cohort was 85% Caucasian and ranged in age from 29-75 years (mean=55 years). The mean follow-up period was 14 months. Overall, the median of SFM and PBF decreased from baseline by 2480.2g (p<.001) and 2.5% (p<.0001), respectively. SLM increased by 1313.3g (p=.012).
Discussion: These findings demonstrate hCG’s efficacy in optimizing body composition in males presenting with hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. In conjunction, precision biomarkers with N-of-1 analysis allow for personalized actionable interventions. Therapy with hCG should be considered in men with a diagnosis of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism independent of age.
These preliminary findings will also address hCG dosing regimens and key biomarkers, currently undergoing analysis. Assessment of a larger, more ethnically diverse cohort treated with hCG for 5 to 10 years is underway to report short and long-term impact on body composition, as well as other variables.
