Oral testosterone undecanoate: Improvements in sexual symptom scores

madman

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Introduction: Male hypogonadism is defined by a low serum testosterone (T) concentration (e.g., < 300 ng/dL) and associated symptoms. A novel oral testosterone undecanoate (TU) formulation[1] now offers hypogonadal men in the U.S. a new treatment option compared to long-standing T replacement products (e.g., intramuscular or subcutaneous injections (T-esters), subcutaneous T pellets, transdermal T-gels, buccal T patch or a nasal T-gel).

Objectives: To determine the change in sexual functioning and well-being, as measured by the Psychosexual Daily Questionnaire (PDQ)2, in hypogonadal men after treatment with an oral TU for one year.

Methods: Hypogonadal men, 18-65 y/o, were recruited into a one-year, randomized, multi-center trial. Patients were randomized to either oral TU (n=161) or T-gel (n=160). Hypogonadism was defined as two morning T concentrations < 300 ng/dL with accompanying symptoms. The starting dose of oral TU was 316 mg, BID, and was adjusted to the eugonadal range (300 to 1000 ng/dL) at two predefined time points (D45 and D105) based on serum T levels. Patients were instructed to complete the PDQ for 7 consecutive days prior to their study visits on D0 (baseline; BL), D30, D90, D180, D270, and D365. Safety measures included physical examination, vital signs, fasting clinical laboratory analyses, and prostate measures.

Results: Following oral TU administration, total T increased significantly from 208 ± 108 ng/dL (mean ± SD) at BL to 628 ± 343 ng/dL and 524 ± 215 ng/dL, at D90 and D365, respectively. Overall, 85.0% of TU-treated men achieved mid-eugonadal T levels at D365. There was a significant positive change in all PDQ variables (see Table 1). Consistent increases of > 0.7 in sexual activity and sexual desire scores (both p< 0.0001) occurred beginning on D30 and remained persistently increased over the the12-month study period. An increase of > 0.7 in sexual desire[2] and > 0.6 in sexual activity[3] is associated with clinical meaningful changes in hypogonadal older men. There were also statistically significant increases in positive mood scores (p << 0.001 at each visit) with corresponding statistically significant decreases in negative mood scores (p ≤ 0.0031 at each visit. The most common treatment-emergent adverse events were elevated hematocrit (6.8%), enlarged prostate (5.6%), peripheral edema (5.5%), and hypertension (3.7%). There was a 2.9 ± 3.8% overall increase in hematocrit (p < 0.0001), mean PSA increased 0.29 ± 0.72 (p < 0.0001) and prostate volume increased by 2.97 ± 9.8 ng/mL (p = 0.002). No change occurred in prostate symptom scores. There was an increase in cuff systolic BP of 5.1 ± 15.4 mmHg (p = 0.0003) and a significant decrease in HDL by 11.2 ± 7.94 mg/dL (p < 0.0001) when compared to BL. Notably, there were no clinically significant changes in liver or kidney function.

Conclusion: In hypogonadal men treated for 12-months with a novel oral TU formulation, clinically significant and sustained improvements in sexual symptom scores occurred beginning shortly after therapy and continued during the 12-month period. Anticipated androgen effects on hematocrit, HDL, and prostate parameters were observed.



Table 1: Effect of Oral TU on PDQ Responses over 12-Months (mean ± SD)



BL

D BL to D30

D BL to D90

D BL to D180

D BL to D270

D BL to D365

Sexual Desire

2.0 ± 1.6

1.4 ± 1.3*†

1.7 ± 1.6*†

1.7 ± 1.6*†

1.5 ± 1.6*†

1.5 ± 1.7*†

Sexual Enjoyment with a Partner

1.23 ± 1.4

0.88 ± 1.4*

0.95 ± 1.7*

1.06 ± 1.8*

0.97 ± 1.8*

0.92 ± 1.8*

Negative Mood

1.79 ± 1.3

-0.46 ± 0.98*

-0.46 ± 1.0*

-0.39 ± 1.1*

-0.31 ± 1.2*

-0.41 ± 1.1*

Positive Mood

4.44 ± 1.3

0.35 ± 1.1*

0.66 ± 1.2*

0.64 ± 1.1*

0.57 ± 1.2*

0.52 ± 1.2*

Weekly Sexual Activity

1.97 ± 1.9

1.5 ± 1.7*†

1.8 ± 2.4*†

1.8 ± 2.2*†

1.9 ± 2.4*†

2.0 ± 2.3*†

Satisfaction with Erection

3.47 ± 1.9

0.8 ± 1.5*

1.0 ± 1.7*

1.1 ± 1.7*

1.1 ± 1.6*

0.9 ± 1.4*

Percent Full Erection

57.5 ± 26.2

9.0 ± 18.5*

11.3 ± 22.4*

11.4 ± 24.4*

13.4 ± 23.6*

10.0 ± 19.5*
* Denotes statistically significant change from baseline. All values were p < 0.0001, except D BL to D270 for negative mood (p = 0.0031) and D BL to D30 positive mood (p = 0.0002).



† Denotes clinically significant change from baseline. Clinical significance is determined for a change > 0.7 for Sexual Desire or > 0.6 for Weekly Sexual Activity
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A form of estrogen produced from testosterone. Important for bone health, mood, and libido. Too high can cause side effects; too low can affect well-being.

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Scientific Reference

Lakshman KM, Kaplan B, Travison TG, Basaria S, Knapp PE, Singh AB, LaValley MP, Mazer NA, Bhasin S. The effects of injected testosterone dose and age on the conversion of testosterone to estradiol and dihydrotestosterone in young and older men. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2010 Aug;95(8):3955-64.

DOI: 10.1210/jc.2010-0102 | PMID: 20534765 | PMCID: PMC2913038

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